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ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT 
IN  ILLINOIS 


BY 

MARY  LOUISE  CHILDS 

Teacher  of  History  and  Civics,  Evanston 
Township  High  School 


NEW  YORK 

THE  CENTURY  CO. 

1917 


S1^" 


Copyright,  IQ14,  1917,  by 
The  Century  Co. 


TO 

THE   GIRLS   AND    BOYS 

OF  MY  CIVICS   CLASSES  WHOSE  INTEREST 

AND   LOYALTY  HAVE   BEEN   THE 

INSPIRATION  OF  THEIR 

TEACHER 


37170C 


FOREWORD  FOR  THE  TEACHER 

How  may  a  civics  teacher  make  vital  the  study  of  State 
and  local  government  in  IlHnois?  What  are  the  essential 
facts  with  which  the  immature  pupil  should  be  familiar  at 
the  end  of  the  course?  What  method  of  instruction  will 
most  quickly  arouse  his  interest  and  give  him  the  best  train- 
ing in  citizenship?  An  earnest  attempt  has  been  made  in 
this  brief  text  book  to  suggest  an  answer,  in  part,  to  these 
important  questions. 

The  first  indispensable  requisites  are  enthusiasm  and 
active  interest  in  the  subject  on  the  part  of  the  teacher.  A 
bored,  indifferent  teacher  can  never  kindle  interest  or  en- 
thusiasm in  the  minds  of  high-school  pupils  of  civics,  or 
guide  them  into  the  broad,  far-reaching  fields  of  citizenship. 
The  essential  facts  of  government,  particularly  State  and 
local,  are  dry  as  sawdust  unless  vitalized  by  a  live  teacher 
through  connecting  them  at  every  step  with  the  actual 
government  in  the  community  in  which  the  pupils  live. 

Among  the  necessary  devices  to  arouse  interest  and  catch 
the  attention  is  the  bulletin  board.  Try  a  large  one  covered 
with  dark  green  felt  and  hang  it  in  a  conspicuous  place.  If 
your  pupils  have  access  to  Chicago  dailies,  they  will  be 
keenly  interested  in  illustrating  their  note-books  from  the 
cartoons.  A  very  interesting,  instructive  commentary  on 
local  and  State  government  can  be  made  by  these  cartoons. 
Pupils  soon  learn  to  select  wisely,  avoid  the  vulgar  or  simply 


viii  FOREWORD  FOR  THE  TEACHER 

grotesque,  and  choose  the  most  effective  ones.  Try  an 
8  X  lo  notebook,  loose  leaf,  with  manila  sheets  added  to 
the  note  paper  for  the  cartoons  and  newspaper  clippings. 
If  you  "  shingle  "  the  cartoons  —  slip  one  under  the  other, 
and  paste  along  upper  edge  only  —  five  or  more  can  be  put 
on  one  page  of  the  manila  sheet. 

A  "  camera  squad  "  to  conduct  a  camera  tour  through 
the  pupils'  ward  or  village  arouses  much  interest.  Their 
kodaks  of  alleys  and  back  yards,  garbage  cans,  paper-  and 
refuse-littered  streets  and  parkways,  the  city  "  dump  "  oi^ 
the  crematory,  should  be  mounted  and  hung  in  the  civics 
room  where  all  may  share  the  results  of  the  "  camera  tour." 
Have  them  show  praiseworthy  conditions  as  well  as  things 
to  criticize. 

The  newspaper  clippings  should  always  have  noted  on 
them  name  of  paper,  date,  and  an  underscore  in  red  ink  or 
blue  pencil  to  show  why  the  item  was  cut  out.  This  imder- 
score  saves  much  written  explanation  and  is  helpful  in 
training  a  pupil's  judgment  of  the  essential  thing  in  a  news- 
paper article. 

Official  stationery  and  all  kinds  of  official  seals  serve  a 
useful  purpose.  A  letter  from  some  official  makes  that 
officer  seem  a  real  human  being  instead  of  a  noun  in  a  text- 
book, and  to  make  this  vital,  human  connection  between 
text-book  and  actual  government  is  the  most  essential  part 
of  our  work.  Every  report,  annual  message,  budget, 
ordinance,  legal  paper,  that  can  be  secured  —  and  their  name 
is  legion  —  is  grist  for  the  civics  mill. 

But  the  human  element,  the  meeting  with  officials,  hear- 


FOREWORD  FOR  THE  TEACHER  ix 

ing  them  explain  the  duties  of  their  office,  the  visits  to  in- 
stitutions and  buildings  where  they  actually  see  the  govern- 
mental wheels  in  motion  —  these  are  the  things  that  seem 
to  make  the  deepest  impression  on  a  pupil's  mind.  You  may 
secure  this  vivid  human  illustration  in  several  ways:  by 
excursions  of  all  the  class  (but  if  the  class  is  large,  all 
can  not  hear  and  see  equally  well,  although  they  enjoy 
the  trips  in  large  numbers) ;  by  small  groups  under  a  pupil 
leadtr  who  makes  the  arrangements  for  the  party  and 
is  responsible  for  the  group,  each  pupil  to  make  an  oral  or 
written  report  of  the  trip  in  his  own  section.  This  method 
brings  good  results  in  studying  your  own  town  and  saves 
the  time  of  officials  —  sometimes  the  latter  get  a  bit  im- 
patient if  the  individual  pupils  go  to  them,  but  they  are 
glad  to  give  some  time  to  a  group.  Another  method  is  to 
bring  the  official,  as  the  mayor  or  health  commissioner,  to 
the  class  for  a  talk  on  their  duties.  If  a  stereopticon  can  be 
used  and  slides  shown  in  illustration  of  the  talk,  so  much 
the  better. 

The  following  excursions  were  given  during  one  year 
for  the  civics  class  in  a  suburb  of  Chicago:  A  session  of 
the  Chicago  council  and  of  their  own  council ;  to  the  county 
and  Federal  buildings  and  the  city  hall  in  Chicago;  to  the 
county  infirmary  at  Oak  Forest ;  to  Lockport  via  the  Drain- 
age Canal  in  the  boat  owned  by  the  sanitary  district  and 
courteously  loaned  the  class  for  that  day;  to  the  State 
prison  at  Joliet;  for  the  boys  alone,  to  the  House  of  Cor- 
rection; for  the  girls  alone,  to  Hull  House  and  the  Crane 
Nursery  to  show  how  a  famous  social  settlement  is  helping 


X      FOREWORD  FOR  THE  TEACHER 

to  make  good  citizens  of  aliens;  a  carefully  chosen  session 
of  the  United  States  district  court,  the  docket  for  that  day 
being  planned  six  weeks  in  advance  through  the  kindness 
of  Judge  Landis  so  the  pupils  might  see  a  trial  by  jury; 
a  trip  to  the  Naval  Training  School  at  Lake  Bluff  and  to 
Fort  Sheridan.  These  excursions  include  the  illustrative 
work  for  local,  State,  and  National  Government.  They 
mean  much  work  for  the  teacher,  and  every  detail  must  be 
carefully  planned  if  they  are  successful.  But  they  are  of 
great  value  in  making  vivid  and  practical  the  civics  work 
and  are  wxll  worth  all  they  cost  in  time  and  effort.  De- 
bates and  reports  on  suitable  articles  in  current  magazines 
will  of  course  find  a  place  in  the  work. 

One  main  object  has  been  kept  constantly  in  mind  in 
writing  this  text  book:  First  and  always  to  direct  the 
pupil  to  the  actual  government  in  his  own  locality.  The 
theory  embodied  in  the  statute  and  ordinance  is  one  thing; 
the  practical  working  out  of  the  law  is  frequently  quite  a 
different  matter ;  but  the  practical  method  by  which  the  law 
is  enforced  —  or  not  —  is  the  vital  matter  to  every  citizen 
and  the  side  of  government  too  often  neglected  in  our  civics 
teaching.  There  is  no  subject  taught  in  the  high-school 
course  where  mere  routine,  text-book  recitation,  is  so 
deadly  as  in  civics.  Therefore  every  effort  has  been  made 
to  make  practical  and  vital  the  teaching  of  actual  govern- 
ment within  the  State  of  Illinois. 

The  writer  is  greatly  indebted  to  many  officials  for  per- 
sonal interviews,  letters,  and  reports.  Every  courtesy  has 
been  extended  to  her  in  the  work  by  officials  in  all  depart- 


FOREWORD  FOR  THE  TEACHER  xi 

ments  of  the  State  and  local  governments.  Special  ac- 
knowledgment is  made  to  the  officers  and  director  of  the 
Chicago  Bureau  of  Public  Efficiency  for  permission  to  use 
their  exceedingly  valuable  charts  and  reports.  Mrs. 
Catharine  Waugh  McCulloch  very  kindly  read  part  of  the 
manuscript  and  gave  the  writer  the  benefit  of  helpful  sug- 
gestions and  criticisms. 

No  doubt  many  errors  will  he  discovered,  due  to  the 
short  time  allowed  in  preparation  and  the  pressure  of 
school-room  duties.  Much  is  purposely  omitted  that 
usually  finds  place  in  a  civics  text  book.  But  the  purpose 
of  the  book  as  expressed  in  its  title  has  been  ever  in  mind. 
It  IS  not  intended  in  any  sense  for  a  manual,  and  only 
points  a  way,  tested  for  many  years  in  large  classes  of 
pupils  in  a  suburban  high  school,  to  arouse  keen  interest 
in  the  vital  matters  of  home  government. 

A  Russian  Jew  said  to  the  writer  recently,  "  You  are  a 
patriot  because  you  teach  of  the  government!"  H  all  of 
us  to  whom  are  given  the  honor  of  guiding  these  junior 
citizens  of  Illinois  in  their  first  steps  in  citizenship  could 
always  be  mindful  of  that  fact,  would  not  our  work  be 
ennobled  immeasurably?  On  our  faithful,  intelligent  ef- 
forts will  depend  in  large  degree  the  progress  Illinois  will 
make  in  wise,  humane,  efficient  government.  We  can  so 
vitalize  and  clothe  with  flesh  the  dry  bones  of  civic  facts 
that  our  pupils  will  count  their  study  of  State  and  local 
government  the  most  human,  intensely  alive  subject  in  all 
the  high-school  curriculum.  Is  not  the  end  worth  all  the 
effort? 


FOREWORD  TO  THE  EDITION  OF  1917 

No  practical  method  of  keeping  a  textbook  in  civics  up  to 
date  has  yet  been  evolved.  A  "  loose-leaf  "  collection  of 
printed  lessons  easily  and  economically  exchangeable  for 
nev^  ones  each  year  as  governmental  facts  and  devices  for 
teaching  the  same  evolve  seems  to  be  the  only  possible 
method  of  keeping  pace  w^ith  civic  progress.  But  no  one 
has  yet  come  forw^ard  with  such  a  series  of  lessons  suitable 
for  Illinois  and  therefore  our  textbooks  on  state  and  local 
government  must  be  reprinted  at  frequent  intervals  if  we 
would  keep  them  within  sight  of  present  conditions. 

From  the  printer's  standpoint  —  an  important  one  —  it 
proved  impossible  to  incorporate  in  the  text  the  principal 
changes  in  city,  county  and  state  government  within  Illinois 
made  during  the  last  three  years,  or  to  include  all  these 
changes  in  footnotes.  Therefore  they  have  been  gathered 
mainly  in  Appendix  D  at  the  end  of  the  volume  where  it  is 
hoped  teachers,  pupils  and  others  using  the  book  will  avail 
themselves  constantly  of  these  collected  notes  and  additions 
to  the  text.  Illinois  has  been  making  progress  during  the 
last  three  years  and  particularly  in  the  social  legislation 
written  on  her  statute  books. 

The  new  law  for  the  care  of  the  feeble-minded,  the  great 
increase  in  parks  and  playgrounds,  the  wider  use  of  school 
buildings  and  equipment  for  the  social  needs  of  their  dis- 
tricts and  the  steady  growth  of  the  movement  to  "  pull  Illi- 
nois out  of  the  mud  "  through  a  fine  system  of  highways 


XIV     FOREWORD  TO  THE  EDITION  o'#*  1917 

are  all  proofs  of  the  dawn  of  a  new  social  conscience  in  our 
state. 

When  Illinois'  greatest  need  is  met, —  a  new  constitution 
adapted  to  twentieth-century  conditions, —  no  reprint  of  a 
textbook  like  this  one  will  do,  but  there  must  be  an  entire 
revision  based  on  the  new  instrument  of  government. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I  Cities  and  Villages  . 3 

II  Government  of  Chicago 16 

III  Towns  and  Townships  in  Illinois    ....     54 

V  IV  County  Government  in  Illinois 65 

V  The  Public  Pocketbook  :    How  It  Is  Filled     .     88 

VI  Elections  and  the  Ballot 99 

VII  Judicial  Trials  and  the  Jury  System     .     .     .113 

VIII  State  of  Illinois:    Physiography  and  History  126 

V-  IX  The  General  Assembj-y 138 

X  Executive 151 

XI  State  Judiciary , 159 

XII  Public  Education  in  Illinois 165 

XIII  The  Merit  System  in  Illinois 175 

XIV  State  Charity  Service 188 

.    XV  Amendment  of  the  Illinois  Constitution  .     .   198 

XVI    Illinois  Moving  Forward 201 

Appendix  A  —  Reference  List  of  Books  and  Pam- 
phlets Valuable  for  Study  of  "  Actual  Govern- 
ment IN  Illinois  " 215 

Appendix  B  —  Valuable  Publications  of  Civic  Or- 
ganizations in  Chicago 217 

Appendix  C  —  Vital  Statistics  Law 219 

Appendix    D  —  General    Notes 222 

Index 231 


ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 


ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT 
IN  ILLINOIS 


CHAPTER  I 

CITIES  AND  VILLAGES 

References  : 

1.  Revised  Statutes  (1915-16),  ch.  xxiv. 

(This  general  law  for  cities  and  villages  covers  229  pages  in' 
the  Revised  Statutes  of  Illinois,  not  including  the  Session 
Laws  for  1913-15. 

2.  Greene:     Government  of  Illinois,  pp.  101-106. 

3.  Garner:     Government  in  the  United  States,  pp.  25-56;  Govern- 

ment of  Illinois,  pp.  55-60,  rev.  ed. 

The  city  corporate  touches  the  life  of  the  people  more 
intimately  than  any  governing  body  in  the  world.  To 
speak  of  just  one  factor  in  its  varied  relations  with  the  peo- 
ple, notice  its  streets,  the  "  arteries  through  which  flow  the 
life-blood  of  the  city  —  trade  and  traffic."  "  Here  persons 
of  all  ages  and  all  tastes  go  to  meet  one  another,  to  talk 
over  the  affairs  of  the  day,  to  be  entertained,  to  eat,"  to 
drink,  to  inspect  shop  windows,  to  do  marketing,  to  buy 
and  sell  merchandise,  and  to  perform  a  thousand  offices 
which  the  needs  of  the  city  life  make  profitable,  healthful, 
or  agreeable."  "  Then  consider  the  influence  of  the  streets 
on  the  habits  of  the  people.  In  the  congested  areas  of  the 
city,  the  people  must  spend  a  large  portion  of  their  leisure 

3 


4  /.  :  ACTfJAL  GOyfiRNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

on  the  streets,  because  their  homes  are  too  small  for  com- 
fort, and  if  the  city  allows  the  streets  in  these  sections  to 
remain  unkempt  and  dirty,  the  homes  bordering  them  will 
reflect  the  dirt  and  grime  of  the  city  highway,  inevitably 
much  more,  should  that  *  highway '  be  an  unpaved  alley." 
(Beard:  American  City  Government,  pp.  242-244.)  And 
the  city  streets  represent  only  one  small  segment  of  the 
great  circle  of  the  city  powers  surrounding  city  homes. 

Are  you  familiar  with  the  poster,  "  Madame,  Who  Keeps 
Your  House  ?  "  issued  by  the  Woman's  City  Club  of  Chi- 
cago, 116  South  Michigan  Avenue?  If  not,  make  its  ac- 
quaintance, for  this  famous  poster  has  nearly  circled  the 
globe  since  it  was  published  4  years  ago  to  illustrate  pic- 
torially  the  intimate  relation  existing  between  the  city  hall 
and  the  home.  "  The  poster  contains  a  large  *  C  '  made  up 
of  fifteen  pictures  illustrating  the  city  departments  that 
touch  the  home ;  in  the  center  are  the  words,  *  City  Hall,' 
surrounded  by  a  small  *  c '  made  up  of  the  names  of  the 
city  departments  illustrated.  Below  are  these  words :  *  The 
homely  activities  of  your  daily  life  make  necessary  these 
departments  in  the  government  of  the  city  in  which  you  live. 
Its  interest  in  you  is  personal  and  kindly.  Make  your  in- 
terest in  it  vital  and  helpful.  Educate  yourself  in  civic 
affairs.'  "     Know  your  own  city ! 

What  is  the  organization  in  Illinois  of  this  city  govern- 
ment that  afifects  the  daily  life  of  its  citizens  so  powerfully? 

Cities.  There  are  over  one  thousand  cities  and  vil- 
lages in  Illinois.  The  present  State  constitution  of  1870 
forbids  special  legislation  of  any  kind  except  for  Chicago 
in  a  few  definite  cases,  provided  by  recent  amendment  to  the 
constitution.  Therefore,  in  1872,  the  General  Assembly 
passed  a  law  known  as  the  Cities  and  Villages  Act,  for  the 


CITIES  AND  VILLAGES  5 

government  of  municipalities  in  the  State,  if  they  chose  to 
come  under  its  provisions.  Only  about  seventy-five  cities, 
towns,  and  villages  preferred  to  retain  their  original  special 
charters  granted  by  the  Legislature  before  1870.  The  rest 
by  vote  have  adopted  the  Cities  and  Villages  Act,  and  it  has 
therefore  become  their  charter.  This  general  law  covers 
about  two  hundred  forty  pages  in  the  Revised  Statutes  of 
Illinois  and  carefully  details  what  a  city  may  do,  and  pro- 
vides the  general  framework  of  city  government. 

Much  ingenuity  has  been  displayed  by  the  legislators  in 
framing  laws  needed  for  a  city  like  Chicago  and  a  county 
like  Cook  yet  not  wanted  in  other  cities  and  counties  of 
Illinois.  The  favorite  device  is  to  put  cities  and  counties 
into  classes  according  to  population  and  so  arrange  the 
groups  that  Chicago  and  Cook  County  will  each  come  into 
a  class  by  itself.  "  For  cities  having  over  350,000  popu- 
lation "  (only  Chicago),  or  ''counties  having  over  125,000 
population  "  (only  Cook),  is  frequently  the  wording  of  some 
law  intended  to  apply  to  Chicago  and  Cook  County  alone. 
So  far  the  supreme  court  has  generally  sustained  such  laws 
on  the  ground  of  necessity,  although  they  plainly  violate  the 
spirit  of  the  State  constitution  while  obeying  the  letter. 

Organization  of  a  City.  Any  territory  in  Illinois  not 
less  than  four  square  miles  in  area,  having  at  least  one 
thousand  inhabitants,  may  petition  the  county  judge  (pro- 
bate judge  if  the  county  has  one)  for  a  special  election  to 
vote  on  a  city  organization. 

City  Officers.  If  carried,  the  people  elect  a  mayor, 
aldermen^  clerk,  treasurer,  city  attorney,  and  police  magis- 
trate. The  wards  into  which  the  city  is  divided  must  num- 
ber not  less  than  three  or  more  than  thirty-five,  depending 
on  population,  and  two  aldermen  are  chosen  from  each 


6         ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

ward,  one  each  year.  The  term  of  office  is  two  years  ex- 
cept that  of  the  police  magistrate,  who  is  elected  for  four 
years.  The  aldermen  are  paid  from  three  to  ten  dollars 
per  session  except  in  Chicago.^ 

There  are  over  a  hundred  powers  granted  the  council  in 
the  Cities  and  Villages  Act,  so  its  power  is  ample  to  do 
whatever  is  necessary  for  the  city.  The  mayor  and  other 
officers  have  the  same  powers  given  under  Chicago.^  The 
mayor,  with  the  consent  of  the  council,  may  appoint  a  city 
collector,  to  have  charge  of  special  assessments,  special 
taxes  for  local  improvements  levied  on  property  benefited, 
as  for  paving  a  street  or  putting  in  a  sewer ;  a  commissioner 
of  public  works  to  care  for  streets,  alleys,  sewers,  water 
system,  garbage  collection,  city  buildings;  corporation 
counsel  to  be  legal  adviser  of  the  city  officials ;  comptroller 
to  have  general  oversight  of  all  city  accounts  and  expendi- 
tures; chief  of  police,  health  commissioner,  Hre  marshal, 
whose  names  explain  their  work.  If  the  city  so  orders 
through  a  special  vote,  a  civil  service  commission  of  three 
members  is  also  appointed  by  the  mayor  with  the  consent  of 
the  council  to  conduct  the  examinations  required  for  all  city 
employees,  like  policemen  and  firemen,  who  are  placed  in  the 
classified  service.  Any  of  these  appointed  officers  may  be 
elected  if  the  council  pass  an  ordinance  to  that  effect.  All 
the  officers  allowed  for  governing  a  city  in  Illinois  are 
named  in  the  General  Municipal  Act  of  the  State. 

Commission  Plan  of  City  Government.  By  a  law 
in  effect  in  19  lo,  cities  not  over  200,000  in  population  may, 
through  a  special  election,  adopt  the  commission  plan  of 
government,  electing  a  mayor  and  four  commissioners  at 
large  to  have  charge  of  the  city.  This  act  is  applicable  to 
^  Chap,  ii,  pp.  20-22. 


CITIES  AND  VILLAGES  7 

all  the  cities  in  the  State  except  Chicago,  and  about  thirty 
odd  have  adopted  it,  Springfield,  Rock  Island,  Elgin,  De- 
catur, Cairo,  and  Waukegan,  among  the  number.  The  five 
commissioners  elected  serve  for  four  years  and  are  called 
the  council.  The  commissioner  knov^n  as  the  mayor  pre- 
sides at  all  their  meetings  and  has  charge  of  the  department 
of  public  affairs.  There  are  five  departments  created  by 
the  law:  (i)  Public  Affairs,  (2)  Accounts  and  Finances, 
(3)  Public  Health  and  Safety,  (4)  Streets  and  Pubhc  Im- 
provements, (5)   Public  Property. 

The  five  commissioners  determine  by  majority  vote  v^hat 
duties  shall  be  vested  in  each  department  and  which  com- 
missioner shall  be  its  head.  The  mayor  does  not  have  the 
veto  power.  The  council  appoints  all  city  officers  needed; 
civil  service  is  provided  for  all  employees.  To  prevent  abuse 
of  power  by  the  commissioners,  they  may  be  recalled  at  any 
time  by  a  majority  vote  at  a  special  election.  The  initia- 
tive and  referendum  are  also  provided  to  allow  the  voters 
directly  to  initiate  and  pass  any  necessary  law.  All  fran- 
chises granted  public  service  companies  must  be  approved 
by  the  people  before  going  into  effect.  Provision  is  made 
to  discontinue  the  commission  government  if  the  voters  are 
dissatisfied  after  trying  the  plan. 

The  Chautauquan  Magazine  (Vol.  LI)  has  an  excellent 
symposium  on  "  Commission  Government  for  Cities."  In 
the  Debaters'  Handbooks  is  a  volume  devoted  to  commis- 
sion government. 

City  Manager.  The  most  recent  innovation  in  city 
government  is  the  city  manager,  an  appointed  officer  who 
looks  after  the  city's  business  exactly  as  a  general  manager 
directs  the  affairs  of  a  private  concern.  River  Forest  in 
Cook   County  experimented  with  this  new  kind  of  city 


8         ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

official  but  petty  politics  caused  him  to  resign.  It  is 
claimed  he  considerably  more  than  saved  his  year's  salary 
through  careful  supervision  of  the  village  work.  The  ex- 
periment is  being  watched  with  great  interest  and  seems  full 
of  promise  for  more  efficient  city  government. 

Director  of  Public  Safety.  Another  experiment  in 
municipal  government  is  director  of  public  safety,  who  has 
charge  of  the  three  principal  municipal  departments,  health, 
fire,  and  police.  Evanston  has  experimented  with  such  an 
official  (during  19 13-15),  and  he  worked  for  fire  preven- 
tion, better  sanitary  conditions  through  a  clean-up  cam- 
paign, bakeries  classified  according  to  cleanliness,  and  to 
make  every  policeman  a  health  officer,  so  there  could  be 
stricter  enforcement  of  all  sanitary  regulations,  (i)  This 
combining  the  great  public  safety  departments  of  a  city  is 
another  step  toward  simpler  municipal  government  because 
the  chief  of  police,  health  commissioner,  and  fire  marshal 
are  put  under  civil-service  rules,  and  the  city  gets  one  re- 
sponsible officer  instead  of  three. 

City  Courts  (Rev.  Stat.,  ch.  xxxvii,  sec.  240-363. 
Act  amended  1909.)  Any  city  having  a  population  not 
less  than  three  thousand  may  establish  a  special  city  court 
if  the  voters  so  elect.  The  jurisdiction  of  this  city  court 
will  be  the  same  as  the  State  circuit  court.  There  can  be 
from  one  to  five  judges  according  to  population,  and  the 
salary  is  paid  from  the  State  treasury.  The  term  is  four 
years  and  the  judge  must  not  be  chosen  at  the  same  time 
with  other  city  officers.  Why?  Nineteen  cities  in  Illinois 
have  adopted  this  city  court.  The  justices  of  the  peace 
are  retained  for  petty  cases  in  cities  having  a  special  city 
court;  but  there  is  no  police  magistrate. 

Village  Government.     (Rev.  Stat.  (191 5),  chap,  xxiv, 


CITIES  AND  VILLAGES  9 

sec.  178-193.)  A  village  government  differs  from  a  city 
in  being  more  simple  and  therefore  less  expensive.  It  has 
no  wards.  Any  area,  not  less  than  two  square  miles,  con- 
taining at  least  three  hundred  inhabitants,  if  it  is  not  already 
within  a  village  or  city,  may  be  incorporated  as  a  village  by 
vote  of  the  people  at  a  special  election  and  must  there- 
after remain  a  village  until  it  has  a  thousand  inhabitants, 
when  it  has  the  privilege,  if  the  voters  desire,  of  changing 
to  a  city  government.  There  are  now  (9161)  about  eight 
hundred  villages  in  Illinois. 

I.  Legislative    Branch    of    the    Village    Government.^     Board    of 

Trustees  —  a  president  and  six  trustees  elected  for  two  years 
with  power  of  a  mayor  and  council  in  passing  the  village  ordi- 
.  nances. 

II.  Executive  and  Administrative  Officers. 

1.  President  —  elected  for  two  years;   has   same  veto  power 

as  a  mayor. 

2.  Village  clerk  —  elected  for  one  year. 

3.  Treasurer,    street   commissioner,    board    of   health,    village 

marshal,   and  other  administrative   officers   appointed   by 
the  president  and  board  of  trustees. 

III.  Judicial  Branch. 

Police  magistrate  —  one  only  unless  more  are  authorized  by 
special  acts.  No  police  magistrate  can  also  act  as  justice  of 
the  peace,  although  his  jurisdiction  is  the  same. 

OUTLINE    GOVERNMENT    OF    A    CITY    IN    ILLINOIS 

I.  Organization. 

a.  Petition  to  county  (or  probate)   judge  for  special  election 

to  decide  question  city  government. 

b.  First  election  city  officers:     Mayor,  aldermen,  clerk,  treas- 

urer, attorney,  police  magistrate. 

2  Greene :    Government  of  Illinois,  p.  268. 


10       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

c.  "  Cities  and  Villages  Act,"  passed  Legislature  1872,  becomes 
city's  charter.  Seal  is  granted  by  secretary  of  state  at 
Springfield. 

II.  Boundaries;  number  of  wards  and  precincts. 

III.  Time  of  election. 

IV.  Term  of  office. 

V.  Legislative  Department. 

A.  Council  composed  of  mayor  and  aldermen. 

1.  Duties. 

a.  Levy  taxes. 

b.  Confirm  or  reject  appointments  mayor. 

c.  Provide  police,  fire,  health  protection. 
3.  Grant  franchises. 

e.  Provide  for  public  highways  and  sidewalks. 

f.  Provide   for  street  cleaning,   lighting;   water  Sup- 

ply, garbage  removal,  etc. 

2.  Salary. 

VI.  Executive  Department. 

A.  Mayor.     Who?     When  elected? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  Preside  council  meetings. 

b.  Vote  in  case  of  tie. 

c.  Sign  or  veto  ordinances :  may  veto  separate  items 

in    appropriation    ordinance,    or    annual    budget. 
Veto  overcome  by  two-thirds  vote  council. 

d.  Send  annual  message  to  council. 

e.  Appoint  officers  consent  council. 

f.  Issue  proclamations. 

g.  May  pardon  any  violation  of  ordinance  or  remit 

any  fine  imposed  for  such  violation. 

2.  Salary.     Find  from  city  budget. 

B.  Clerk.     Who?    When  elected? 

I.  Duties. 

a.  Keep  minutes  council  meetings. 

b.  Keep  seal  and  all  important  papers. 


CITIES  AND  VILLAGES  n 

c.  Post  ordinances  and  notices. 

d.  Issue  licenses  and  permits  by  order  Mayor. 
2.  Salary. 

C.  Treasurer.     Who?     When  elected?     Amount  of  bond? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  Charge   of   all    city    funds   except   special    assess- 

ments. 

b.  Acts  as  town  collector  for  general  taxes. 

2.  Salary. 

D.  City    Collector.     Who?     When    appointed?     Amount     of 

bond  ? 

1.  Duty. 

a.  Receives  special  assessments  or  special  city  taxes 
for  some  particular  improvement,  to  be  paid  by 
property  benefited;  as  a  street  paved  or  sewer 
put  in.    Also  fees  for  licenses  and  permits. 

2.  Salary. 

E.  Comptroller.     Who?    When  appointed? 

"  Watch-dog  of  the  city  treasury." 

1.  Duties. 

a.  Audits  all  accounts  of  treasurer. 

b.  Furnishes    estimates    expenses    for   every   depart- 

ment of  city  government. 

2.  Salary. 

F.  Commissioner    Public   Works.     Who?     When    appointed? 

1.  Departments  under  his  supervision. 

a.  Water  works. 

b.  Streets  and  alleys. 

c.  Walks  and  cross  walks. 

d.  Public    parks;    playgrounds;    parkways.     (Some- 

times controlled  by  an  elected  park  board.) 

e.  Public  buildings,  city  hall,  library,  fire  and  police 

stations,  etc. 

f.  Street  lighting. 

g.  Sewers. 

2.  Salary. 


12       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

G.  Health  Commissioner?     Who?     When  appointed? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  Inspects  water,  milk,  ice,  meat,  plumbing. 

b.  Attends  to  quarantine  notices. 

c.  Is    responsible    for   fumigating   houses   after   con- 

tagious disease. 

2.  Salary. 

H.  Fire  Marshal.     Who?     When  appointed? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  Charge  of  firemen,  who  are  often  under  civil-serv- 

ice rules. 

b.  Charge    of    police    force    needed    in    any    quarter 

where  there  is  fire. 

2.  Any  salary? 

I.  Chief  of  Police.     Who?     When  appointed? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  Keeps  the  peace  and  protects  all  citizens. 

b.  General  control  of  policemen,  who  are  often  under 

civil  service. 

2.  'Salary. 

J.  Library  Directors.     Nine.     How  chosen? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  To  manage  free  public  library. 

b.  To  appoint  librarian  and  assistants. 

c.  To  purchase  all  books. 

d.  To  make  rules  and  regulations  for  use  of  library, 

2.  No  salary. 

K.  Civil  Service  Commission.     Three.     How  chosen? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  To  conduct  examinations   for  policemen,  firemen, 

library    cadets,    clerks,    and    stenographers    em- 
ployed by  the  city. 

b.  To  certify  standings  of  those  on  eligible  list  to  the 

appointing  officer. 

2.  Any  salary? 


CITIES  AND  VILLAGES  13 

VII.  Judicial  Department. 

A.  Police  Magistrate.     Who?     When  elected? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  To  try  all  violations  ordinances. 

b.  To   examine   any   case   and   bind   person   over   to 

grand  jury. 

2.  Salary. 

B.  City  Attorney.     Who?     When  elected? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  Prosecutes  and  defends  lawsuits  for  the  city. 

2.  Salary. 

C.  Corporation  Counsel.    Who?    When  appointed? 

1.  Duties. 

a.  Legal  adviser  for  city  officers. 

b.  Draws  up  ordinances,  if  so  requested. 

c.  Draws  contracts,  leases,  deeds,  all  legal  papers  for 

city  departments. 

2.  Salary. 

ILLUSTRATIVE    MATERIAL   NEEDED 

1.  Copy  of  Revised  Statutes  of  Illinois,  edition  1915  if  possible. 

2.  Copy  city  charter  if  one  has  been  granted. 

3.  Copy  of  city  ordinances. 

4.  Map  of  city  showing  wards  and  precincts.     (Indispensable.) 

5.  Maps  of  separate  wards.  If  these  can  not  be  had,  make  your 
own  blue  prints  from  regular  map  of  city.  Or  use  tracing  paper 
to  get  your  separate  ward  maps.  On  these  mark  all  government 
buildings,  as  fire  and  police  stations,  schoolhouses,  library  station, 
small  parks,  and  field  houses. 

6.  Get  the  statistics  from  the  Health  Department  and  make 
"  spot  maps "  showing  where  death  rate  was  highest  during  the 
last  year,  and  why.  These  ward  maps  can  be  used  in  various  ways 
to  illustrate  municipal  and  social  facts. 

7.  City  manual  for  complete  list  of  officials  and  their  terms. 

8.  Impression  of  city  seal. 

9.  Bulletin  board  for  newspaper  clippings  and  cartoons.     Illus- 


14       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

trate  every  point  possible  by  some  recent  fact  in  your  city  govern- 
ment. .  Study  your  local  papers  to  find  these  illustrations. 

10.  Have  you  a  camera?  Form  a  camera  squad  and  take  a 
"  camera  tour  "  through  your  ward  and  the  city.  Photos  of  the 
alleys,  parks,  waterworks,  your  city  dump,  the  garbage  crema- 
tory, or  the  reduction  plant  will  be  valuable  comments  on  your  city 
government. 


PERTINENT   QUESTIONS 

1.  Compare  the  organization  of  your  city  with  the  one  outlined 
in  the  text.  You  should  know  the  name  of  every  elected  and  ap- 
pointed official  in  your  city.  (2)     Why? 

2.  Make  out  a  list  of  the  services  performed  by  the  National, 
State,  and  municipal  governments  respectively.  Which  govern- 
ment touches  your  daily  life  most  closely? 

3.  Some  citizens  declare  they  never  vote  at  a  city  election;  only 
at  the  State  and  National.  What  is  your  opinion  of  such  a  citi- 
zen?    Give  three  reasons  for  your  answer. 

4.  Bryce  says  that  city  government  is  the  "  blackest  spot "  in 
American  politics.     Why? 

5.  Why  should  municipal  elections  be  absolutely  non-partisan? 
How  can  they  be  made  non-partisan? 

6.  What  societies,  clubs,  and  organizations  are  at  work  in  your 
city  to  make  it  a  better  place  to  live  in  ?     How  can  you  help  them  ? 

7.  Does  your  city  have  a  civil-service  commission?  H  so,  what 
employees  are  covered  by  its  examinations? 

8.  What  public  utilities  are  owned  and  operated  by  your  city? 
If  none,  then  what  are  the  terms  made  by  the  franchises  granted 
the  private  companies  furnishing  your  gas,  water,  electric  light, 
and  street-car  service?  Do  these  companies  pay  the  city  for  the 
privilege  of  using  the  streets,  which  are  the  property  of  the  peo- 
ple?    If  not,  why?     How  long  do  these  franchises  run? 

9.  How  does  your  city  dispose  of  garbage  and  all  kinds  of  house- 
hold and  factory  waste? 

10.  What  kinds  of  business  does  your  city  license?  How  would 
you  secure  a  license?  What  would  you  have  to  pay  for  it? 
(Consult  the  Revised  Ordinances.) 


CITIES  AND  VILLAGES  15 

11.  Does  your  city  need  a  city  manager?  (3) 

12.  What  are  the  advantages  in  the  commission  plan  of  city 
government?  What  disadvantages?  Would  it  be  a  good  thing 
for  your  city?    Give  reasons. 


CHAPTER  II 

GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO 

References  : 

1.  The  Chart  of  the  Organization  of  the  Government  of  Chicago, 

prepared  by  Chicago  Bureau  of  Public  Efficiency,  p.  25.    All 
their  charts  are  of  very  great  value  for  accuracy. 

2.  Chicago   City  Manual,  191 5. 

3.  Effi.ciency  Charts  prepared  by  Civil  Service  Commission  to  show 

organization  of  all  city  departments. 

4.  Rev.  Stat.,  1915,  ch.  24. 

5.  "  History  and  Gov.  of  Chicago."     Educ.  Bi-Mo.,  Chicago  Normal 

College. 

Our  Civic  Creed.  "  Chicago  does  not  ask  us,  her  citizens,  to  die  for 
her  welfare;  she  asks  us  to  live  for  her,  and  so  to  live,  and  so  to  act, 
that  her  government  may  be  pure,  her  officers  honest,  and  every  corner 
of  her  territory  shall  be  a  fit  place  to  grow  the  best  men  and  women 
who  shall  rule  over  her." — Adapted  from  a  Wisconsin  City. 

"  Where  '  we  will,'  there  's  a  way." —  Chicago's  new  motto. —  From 
The  Tribune. 

Early  History  of  Chicago.  The  famous  treaty  of 
Greenville  (1795)  made  by  the  United  States  with  the 
western  Indians,  ceded  a  tract  of  land  six  miles  square  — 
a  congressional  township  —  at  the  mouth  of  the  Chicago 
river,  to  the  Government.  No  use  was  made  of  this  ces- 
sion until  the  winter  of  1803,  when  Fort  Dearborn  was 
built  at  the  mouth  of  the  river.  A  tablet  marking  the  site 
of  the  fort  has  been  placed  on  a  building  at  the  foot  of  Rush 
Street  bridge.  The  Chicago  Historical  Society  has  a  good 
model  of  the  fort.     Most  of  the  land  once  occupied  by  the 

16 


GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  17 

old  fort  is  now  the  bed  of  the  Chicago  river.  There  is 
great  difference  of  opinion  over  the  meaning  of  the  word 
'*  Chicago,"  but  none  over  its  Indian  origin.  It  was  prob- 
ably derived  from  the  Indian  word  for  the  "  wild  onion  " 
that  flourished  over  the  prairies  and  marshes  around  the 
lake.  Consult  J.  S.  Currey's  History  of  Chicago,  Vol.  I, 
pp.  32-34. 

The  first  town  of  Chicago  contained  less  than  half  a 
square  mile.  It  lay  between  State,  Madison,  Desplaines, 
and  Kinzie  Streets.  The  present  city  contains  199  square 
miles  (i)  and  extends  over  twenty-five  miles  north  and 
south,  and  from  nine  to  fourteen  miles  east  and  west.  The 
city  has  grown  to  this  wide  territory  through  various  annex- 
ations. In  addition  to  this  surface  expansion,  Chicago  has 
"  partially  built  itself  up  out  of  the  marsh  and  is  now  about 
fourteen  feet  higher  than  the  original  level.'*  This  fact 
has  an  important  bearing  on  the  ever-present  drainage  prob- 
lem and  makes  it  a  little  easier  to  provide  an  adequate  sewer 
system  for  the  city. 

Chicago  was  incorporated  as  a  town  in  1833  because  the 
United  States  Government  had  just  removed  the  last 
Indians  from  Illinois,  thus  throwing  open  the  land  around 
Chicago  freely  to  white  settlers.  The  birthday  of  the  city 
was  March  4,  1837,  as  its  seal  testifies.  The  population 
was  4,170. 

Government  of  Chicago.  Because  Chicago  is  now 
the  second  largest  city  in  the  United  States  and  the  fourth 
in  the  world  —  only  London,  New  York,  and  Paris  are 
larger  —  and  because  it  contains  more  than  one-third  the 
population  of  Illinois,  every  citizen  of  the  State  should  feel 
pride  in  this  great  city  and  be  interested  in  knowing  how  it 
is  governed. 


i8       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

No  Special  Charter.  The  constitution  of  1870  for- 
bids special  legislation  of  any  kind.  In  consequence,  the 
"  Cities  and  Villages  Act "  was  passed  by  the  Illinois  Gen- 
eral Assembly,  1872,  and  all  cities  organized  since  that  date 
come  under  the  provisions  of  this  general  law  and  do  not 
have  any  separate  city  charter. 

Chicago  voted  to  accept  this  municipal  corporation  act 
in  1875  ^^^  th^s  S^^^  ^P  its  charter  after  forty  years'  ex- 
perience with  government  under  various  special  charters. 

The  Council.  Chicago's  is  one  of  the  best  examples  in 
the  United  States  of  a  powerful  city  council.  It  is  a  council- 
governed  city.  This  legislative  body  is  made  up  of  seventy 
aldermen,  two  elected  from  each  of  the  thirty-five  wards. 
The  ward  bodies  are  determined  by  population,  and  the 
areas  differ  greatly.  About  70,000  people  live  in  a  ward 
since  the  reapportionment  of  December  4,  191 1.  Get  a 
map  of  Chicago,  with  wards  and  precincts  marked,  from  the 
Bureau  of  Maps,  in  the  city  hall.  Also  a  separate  map 
of  your  own  ward.  The  term  of  office  of  the  aldermen  will 
be  four  years  beginning  in  April,  19 14,  if  the  voters  at 
that  election  accept  the  law  passed  by  the  last  Legislature 
increasing  the  term  from  two  to  four  years.  (2) 

The  mayor  presides  over  the  council,  but  has  a  vote  only 
in  case  of  a  tie.  He  has  much  less  power  than  the  council, 
and  even  the  powers  he  has  are  limited  in  several  ways  by 
that  body.  If  the  personal  influence  of  the  mayor  is  great, 
he  may  be  able  to  persuade  enough  aldermen  to  vote  for 
ordinances  he  favors  to  put  them  through.  But  the  council 
can  control  matters  if  they  will.  The  greater  power  is 
theirs.  The  municipal  act  of  1872,  many  times  amended, 
enumerates  over  a  hundred  powers  granted  a  city  council. 

Sessions.    The  council  meets  regularly  every  Monday  (3) 


'  GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  19 

afternoon  at  two  o'clock  in  the  council  chamber  of  the  city 
hall.  The  council  sessions  are  open  to  the  public,  and  every 
citizen  ought  to  attend  frequently  and  notice  how  the  alder- 
men from  his  ward  vote  on  important  ordinances.  They 
are  paid  $3,000  salary  and  do  their  work  largely  through 
standing  committees.  To  listen  intelligently  at  a  council- 
meeting  one  needs  to  know  the  regular  or  routine  order  of 
business : 

1.  Roll  call  of  aldermen  by  wards. 

2.  Reading  of  the  minutes  of  the  last  meeting. 

3.  Messages  from  the  mayor  and  reports  from  heads 
of  departments. 

4.  Presentation  of  new  business  by  wards,  including  in- 
troduction of  ordinances. 

5.  Reports  from  committees. 

6.  Unfinished  business. 

The  Committees.  (4)  On  request  you  can  get  from  the 
city  clerk  a  card  containing  the  names  of  all  the  aldermen 
by  wards,  and  all  the  standing  and  special  committees  of 
the  council.  Every  pupil  should  have  one  of  these  cards 
for  reference.  Also  get  a  copy  of  the  proceedings  of  the 
latest  council  meeting.  The  names  of  these  committees  tell 
their  work :  Finance,  charge  of  the  city  budget  —  for  19 16, 
$72,384,987.  All  bills  against  the  city  must  be  approved 
by  this  committee  and  its  chairman  is  the  mayor's  spokes- 
man on  the  floor  of  the  council-chamber.  (5)  He  is  paid 
$6,000  a  year  and  has  to  give  his  entire  time  to  this  impor- 
tant work.  Committee  on  local  transportation  looks  after 
matters  of  street-car  service,  such  as  through  routing  of  the 
elevated  cars  and  lengthening  the  platforms  in  the  loop  dis- 
trict; license,  judiciary,  streets  and  alleys,  building,  health, 


20       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

fire,  police,  harbors  and  bridges,  water,  taxes,  civil  service ; 
gas,  oil,  and  electric  light,  and  elections,  complete  the  list 
of  standing  committees.  There  are  three  special  commit- 
tees now  on  bathing  beaches  and  piers,  small  parks,  and 
compensation.  The  latter  looks  after  the  pay  the  city 
receives  for  franchises,  permits,  and  licenses,  or  special 
privileges  of  any  kind  granted  a  corporation  or  private 
citizen.  As  Chicago  received  nearly  one  million  dollars  in 
revenue  in  19 15  from  these  sources,  the  committee's  work 
is  needed. 

The  Budget.  The  passing  of  the  appropriation  ordi- 
nance, or  city  budget  (6),  in  January  annually,  is  one  of  the 
most  important  acts  of  the  council.  The  budget  is  based' 
on  the  estimates  of  the  comptroller  after  each  item  has 
been  thoroughly  considered  by  the  finance  committee  and 
given  their  recommendation.  The  vote  of  the  council  on 
the  budget  must  be  by  roll  call.  In  fact,  the  passing  of 
every  ordinance  requires  a  roll-call  vote.  The  council  is 
restricted  by  law  to  a  debt  limit  of  5  per  cent,  and  a  taxation 
limit  of  2  per  cent,  on  the  assessed  valuation  of  all  the  tax- 
able property  in  the  city.  Any  expenditure  of  money  at 
any  time  also  requires  the  same  recorded  vote.  The  dia- 
gram, "  Chicago's  Pocketbook,"  shows  how  the  public 
pocketbook  is  emptied. 

Executive  Officers.  The  Mayor.  Chicago  elects 
the  mayor,  seventy  aldermen,  the  city  clerk,  and  treasurer. 
"  The  mayor  is  elected  by  the  people,  to  serve  the  people  " 
for  a  term  of  four  years.     His  salary  is  $18,000  a  year. 

His  powers. 

A.  As  chairman  of  the  city  council  he  may  approve  or 
veto  its  ordinances  (may  veto  separate  items  in  an  appro- 
priation bill  and  approve  the  rest).    But  a  two-thirds  vote 


J^P^*^'      ■         K 


Chicago's  F?)cket  Book 

WHERE  THE  TAXES  GO. 


THIS  SHOWS  THE  DISTRIBUTION 
OF  EVERY  DOLLAR  OF  TAXES 


Prepared  by  Woman's  City  Club  of  Chicago,  1912 


22       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

will  defeat  a  veto  and  make  the  ordinance  law.  Through 
written  messages  to  the  council  he  recommends  any  meas- 
ures he  wishes  considered.  He  is  limited  to  five  days  in 
considering  an  ordinance. 

B.  He  appoints  almost  all  the  executive  officers  of  the 
city,  although  his  power  is  greatly  limited  by  the  civil-serv- 
ice law  and  the  consent  of  the  council.  His  appointing 
power  is  now  limited  to  about  fifty  positions,  mainly  heads 
of  departments,  exempt  from  the  civil  service.  Yet  his 
patronage,  measured  by  the  combined  salaries  of  all  the 
officers  and  employees  he  appoints  and  the  powerful 
patronage  through  the  street  department  in  hiring  men  and 
teams  for  street  work,  amounts  to  thousands  annually. 
One  can  easily  understand  why  an  ambitious  politician 
might  covet  the  mayoralty  of  Chicago. 

C.  He  issues  and  revokes  licenses.  The  exercise  of 
this  power  too  often  links  the  mayor's  office  with  the  liquor 
interests,  and  the  resorts  of  the  underworld. 

D.  He  may  pardon  any  violation  of  an  ordinance  and 
remit  any  fine  levied  as  a  punishment. 

E.  He  has  general  supervision  over  all  city  departments. 

F.  He  is  conservator  of  the  peace  and  responsible  for 
the  safety  and  order  of  the  city  through  his  control  of  the 
public  departments. 

G.  He  must  enforce  all  ordinances  impartially.  (7) 
This  duty  is  the  best  test  of  an  able  mayor  and  a  good  city 
government. 

The  mayor  appoints  the  heads  of  the  following  principal 
departments:  library  board  of  nine  directors;  board  of 
education  of  twenty-one  members;  board  of  three  directors 
for  the  Municipal  Tuberculosis  Sanitarium  (all  these  serve 
without  pay  and  have  the  right  to  levy  separate  taxes)  ;  law 


GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  23 

department,  including  corporation  counsel  and  city  attorney ; 
department  of  finance,  including  comptroller  and  city  col- 
lector; general  superintendent  of  p>olice  and  two  deputies; 
civil-service  commissioners;  fire  and  health  departments; 
city  physician;  building  commissioner;  department  of  boiler 
inspection;  weights  and  measures;  smoke  inspection;  de- 
partment of  supplies  under  business  agent;  transportation; 
track  elevation;  department  of  public  works;  of  electricity; 
special  park  commission  and  the  city  forester;  board  of  local 
improvements;  board  of  examining  engineers;  harbor  and 
subway  commission ;  superintendent  and  three  inspectors 
for  House  of  Correction ;  inspector  of  oils ;  bureau  of  statis- 
tics. To  simply  read  over  this  list  of  departments  and  re- 
member it  takes  an  army  of  24,000  men  and  women  em- 
ployees to  attend  to  the  city's  business  gives  one  a  little  idea 
of  the  big  problems  to  be  solved  in  running  Chicago's  gov- 
ernment. For  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  organization 
of  all  these  departments,  the  positions  exempt  from  civil- 
service  examinations,  those  under  the  classified  service, 
number  of  employees,  salaries,  and  appropriations  for  19 15, 
consult  the  charts  prepared  by  the  Efficiency  Division  of  the 
Chicago  Civil-Service  Commission.  These  charts  are  very 
valuable,  but  too  complicated  for  the  average  citizen  to  un- 
derstand. The  admirable  "  Chart  of  the  Organization  of 
the  City  of  Chicago,"  prepared  in  October  191 3,  by  the 
Chicago  Bureau  of  Public  Efficiency,  315  Plymouth  Court, 
and  reproduced  on  p.  25,  gives  a  clear,  definite  idea  of  the 
organization  of  this  great  city  government.  (8) 

The  City  Clerk,  elected  for  two  years,  keeps  the  city 
seal,  all  minutes  of  council  meetings,  lists  of  licenses  and 
permits  issued,  and  franchises  granted  by  the  council.  He 
is  custodian  of  all  city  papers,  including  the  ordinances. 


24       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

He  IS  the  only  city  official  not  required  by  law  to  make  an 
annual  report  to  the  mayor  and  council.  (One  solitary  re- 
port was  made  voluntarily,  1908,  by  the  city  clerk,  but 
the  excellent  precedent  then  set  has  never  been  followed.) 

More  than  ninety  different  licenses  are  issued  by  the  city 
clerk,  varying  from  permission  to  sell  gasoline,  ice,  or  liquor, 
to  the  right  to  collect  junk.  The  fees  required  for  these 
licenses  are  paid  to  the  city  collector,  but  the  license  and 
metal  tag  often  required  are  issued  by  the  clerk. 

The  City  Treasurer  is  elected  for  two  years;  receives 
$12,000  salary;  must  give  a  bond  (191 5,  $5,000,000),  de- 
termined by  the  council.  He  is  responsible  for  all  the  city 
funds,  including  the  school  taxes  —  in  1916  over  seventy- 
two  million  dollars.  By  act  of  the  Legislature,  1913,  a 
terrh  of  the  city  clerk  and  the  treasurer  of  Chicago  has  been 
increased  to  four  years  if  the  voters  approve  at  the  regular 
April  election  in  19 14.  (9) 

Law  Department.  It  takes  a  group  of  more  than 
seventy  attorneys  and  an  office  force  of  over  one  hundred 
to  control  the  law  business  of  the  city.  At  their  head  is  the 
Corporation  Counsel,  who  is  the  chief  legal  adviser  of  the 
mayor,  the  council,  and  all  the  city  officials.  His  salary 
is  $10,000.  The  entire  legal  department  is  exempt  from 
any  civil-service  examination  and  the  appointments  are 
purely  political. 

The  Business  Agent  is  responsible  for  buying  all  sup- 
plies, from  office  stationery  to  hay  for  the  city's  horses.  He 
must  give  a  bond  for  the  faithful  performance  of  his  duties. 
Every  city  officer  and  employee  is  put  under  a  bond  to  guar- 
antee good  service. 

Board  of  Local  Improvements  has  five  members  ap- 
pointed by  the  mayor  with  the  consent  of  the  council.     It 


THE  VOTERS  OF  THE 
CITYofCHICAGO 


BOARD  OF 
ELECTION 

commissioners!? 


Appoin  +  ed  by   the 
County  Judge 


Dcpariments  or  Appointive  Officials 


Prepared  by  Chicago  Bureau  of  Public  Efficiency,  1913   (10) 


Chart    of    Organization    of    the   government    of   the    City   of    Chicago 
showing  lines  of  authority  and  salary  rates  for  elective  officials. 


26       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

is  their  duty  to  apportion  on  each  piece  of  property  benefited 
the  amount  of  every  special  assessment  ordered  by  the  coun- 
cil for  any  local  improvement,  as  a  sewer,  water  main,  street 
or  alley  paving. 

Other  Executive  Officers.     The  duties  of  most  of 
these  executive  officers  are  explained  by  the  name  of  the 
office,  but  a  few  require  additional  explanation.     Comptrol- 
ler is  the  financial  agent  for  the  city  and  has  general  over- 
sight of  all  persons  who  handle  the  cash  of  the  city,  or 
its  deeds,  contracts,  and  leases.     He  is  head  of  the  depart- 
ment of  finance,  and  the  elected  city  treasurer  and  appointed 
collector  are  subordinate  to  him.     He  is  often  called  "  the 
watch-dog  of  the  city  treasury."     The  City  Collector  re- 
ceives special  assessments,  licenses,  and  the  wheel  tax.     The 
Commissioner  of  Public  Works  has  a  great  variety  of  duties 
and  is  responsible  for  more  bureaus  (subdivisions  of  depart- 
ments)  than  any  other  city  officer.     Streets,  alleys,  side- 
walks, their  paving,  repairing,  and  cleaning;  bridges,  via- 
ducts, sewers,  and  the  water  system ;  the  engineering  bureau ; 
the  erection  and  care  of  all  public  buildings  belonging  to 
the  city ;  docks,  wharves,  market  places  —  all  these  represent 
part  of  the  services  rendered  by  this  huge  department.     It 
takes  now  a  small  army  of  5,000  persons  to  do  this  work, 
and  the  council  appropriated  over  $500,000  in  19 16  for  its 
maintenance.     In    addition,    the    commissioner    of    public 
works  is  responsible  for  the  expenditure  of  other  millions  in 
special  public  improvements  ( u  )  to  be  constructed,  like  the 
proposed  boulevard  linking  the  North  and  South  Sides  by 
a  double-deck  bridge  at  Pine  Street.     The  Bureau  of  Streets 
under  the  Department  of  Public  Works  also  has  charge  of 
the  removal  of  all  waste,  refuse  and  snow  from  the  streets 
and  alleys.     This  includes  the  so-called  '*  pure  garbage  "  or 


GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  '     27 

kitchen  waste.  In  the  last  three  years  Chicago  has  made 
much  progress  toward  solving  her  troublesome  garbage 
problem.  In  proof,  note  the  organization  of  a  Bureau  of 
Waste  Disposal  under  an  expert  engineer,  Col.  Henry  A. 
Allen.     (See  note,  Appendix  D.) 

The  House  of  Correction.  The  Chicago  Bridewell, 
as  the  house  of  correction  is  commonly  called,  has  two  thou- 
sand prisoners,  most  of  them  serving  short  sentences,  or 
working  out  fines  imposed  for  violations  of  the  city  ordi- 
nances. This  large  population  makes  the  Bridewell  by  far 
the  largest  prison  in  Illinois,  as  there  are  only  about  1,400 
convicts  at  Joliet.  The  Chicago  house  of  correction  has 
a  national  reputation  due  to  the  humane,  wise  government 
of  its  superintendent,  John  L.  Whitman,  who  has  been  re- 
tained through  rival  administrations  owing  to  his  fine  work. 
The  inmates  of  the  John  Worthy  School  (12),  an  institu- 
tion for  delinquent  boys,  controlled  by  Chicago,  have  been 
removed  to  Gage  farm.  Riverside,  where  they  can  have  the 
home  life  of  the  cottage  and  farm  and  much  better  chance 
for  reform  than  under  the  walls  of  the  Bridewell  and  in  a 
"jail  school."  The  John  Worthy  building  is  now  used 
for  a  hospital  for  inebriates  under  the  management  of  the 
superintendent  of  the  house  of  correction. 

Municipal  Courts  of  Chicago.  The  judicial  officers  of 
Chicago  are  now  thirty-one  elected  municipal  court  judges, 
ten  of  whom  are  elected  in  November  19 14.  Their  term  is 
six  years.  The  municipal  court  was  established  by  act  of 
Legislature  and  referendum  vote  of  the  people,  1905,  and 
opened  December  1906.  This  court  replaces  the  nineteen 
notorious  justices  of  the  peace  appointed  by  the  governor. 
By  amendment  to  the  Municipal  Court  Act  approved  19 13, 
the  term  of  part  of  the  municipal  court  judges  will  be 


28     •  ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

lengthened  to  allow  their  election  to  come  in  April  instead 
of  November.  This  court  tries  civil  and  criminal  cases 
in  Chicago  where  the  amount  involved  is  not  over  one  thou- 
sand dollars.  Imprisonment  is  in  the  county  jail  or  house 
of  correction.  The  court  can  not  commit  to  the  peniten- 
tiary. Some  of  the  judges  are  assigned  by  the  chief  jus- 
tice to  certain  specialized  courts.  Three  have  been  estab- 
lished thus  far  and  work  well:  The  courts  of  Domestic 
Relations,  Morals,  and  Speeders.  There  is  a  chief  clerk 
and  a  chief  bailiff  elected  for  six  years  and  the  salary  for 
each  office  is  $6,000.  The  chief  justice  has  $10,000  salary 
and  each  judge,  $6,000. 

Municipal  Tuberculosis  Sanitarium  is  an  independent 
taxing  body,  although  the  three  directors  are  appointed  by 
the  mayor.  Under  direction  of  the  late  Dr.  T.  B.  Sachs, 
the  Sanitarium  instructed  hundreds  of  patients  in  sanitary 
living,  enabling  them  to  resume  work.  Its  work  is  also 
preventive  through  the  dispensaries  maintained  in  the  more 
congested  districts  and  through  the  nurses  employed  to  visit 
the  homes,  search  out  cases  of  tuberculosis,  and  get  them  to 
the  dispensary  for  treatment  if  possible;  also  to  teach  the 
home  care  necessary  for  cure  and  to  prevent  the  spread  of 
the  "white  plague."  A  municipal  sanitarium  with  eight 
hundred  beds  has  been  constructed  at  Bowmanville. 

The  three  great  public  safety  departments,  health,  fire, 
police;  the  work  of  the  board  of  education  and  the  park 
commissions  caring  for  municipal  recreation,  all  deserve, 
and  will  receive,  special  notice. 

Is  it  wise  for  Chicago  to  spend  six  times  as  much  for  pro- 
tection of  property  as  for  protection  of  life?  Notice  the 
table  of  relative  expenditures  for  these  public  safety  de- 
partments (p.  34)  and  think  what  it  means. 


'    GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  29 

HEALTH  DEPARTMENT  OF  CHICAGO  1 

"  The  public  health  is  the  foundation  on  which  repose  the  happiness 
of  the  people  and  the  power  of  a  country." —  Lord  Beaconsfield. 

"  For  most  of  us,  our  health  is  our  wealth." 

"  The  health  department  operates  under  the  police  power  of  the 
State."  2 

"  The  police  power  is  the  right  of  a  community  to  do  whatever  is  re- 
quired to  protect  its  health  or  morals." — Dr.  Evans.^ 

Organization.  The  health  department  of  Chicago  is 
organized  under  the  following  bureaus  which  are  directly 
responsible  to  the  health  commissioner  appointed  by  the 
mayor : 

I.  Bureau  of  Medical  Inspection  has  two  important  divisions: 
(A)   Contagious  Diseases,  and   (B)   Child  Hygiene.* 

A.  Division  of  Contagious  Diseases. 

Duties : 

a.  To  prevent  spread  of  contagion. 

b.  To  provide  school  inspection. 

B.  Division  of  Child  Hygiene. 

Duties  : 

To  conduct  infant  welfare  work.     Over   100  nurses 
do  the  home  and  school  visiting  in  this  division. 

1  Courtesy  Chicago  Woman's  City  Club.  (14) 

2  See  Forman:    Am.  Rep.,  pp.  313-318;  and  Adv.  Civ.,  pp.  390-396. 

3  See  Report  Chicago  Dep't  Health  for  1907-08-09-10. 

4 "Little  Mothers'  Schools"  for  the  practical  instruction  of  young 
girls  in  the  care  of  the  baby  are  conducted  by  the  Child  Hygiene 
division  of  the  health  department  in  over  thirty  of  the  public  schools. 
Classes  are  held  every  week  and  fifteen  hundred  girls  from  twelve  to 
fifteen  attend.  This  is  another  feature  of  the  Department's  campaign 
to  save  the  babies. 

The  weekly  Bulletin  issued  by  the  Chicago  Health  Department  is  an- 
other important  link  in  this  vital  chain  of  disease  prevention.     (15) 


30       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

2.  Laboratory  Service. 

Duties: 

a.  To  give  early,   sure  diagnosis  of  contagious  dis- 

eases   through    "  cultures "    taken    from    throat, 
nose,  or  blood  of  a  sick  person. 

b.  Milk  and  water  analysis. 

"  Forty  per  cent,  of  Chicago's  deaths  are  from 
preventable  diseases." 

3.  Bureau  of  Food  Inspection. 

Duties: 

a.  To   protect   the   meat   and   milk   supplies:   works 

with  laboratory  service. 

b.  To  regulate  markets  and  food  supplies.  "  Death 
lurks  in  dirty  food." 

4.  Bureau  of  Sanitary  Inspection. 

About  13,000  buildings  are  erected  annually  in  Chicago.    The 
hundred  inspectors  have  abundance  of  work  to  do. 
Duties: 

a.  To  regulate  housing. 

b.  To  promote  cleanliness  (see  illustration)  through 

inspecting  plumbing. 

c.  To  inspect  restaurants. 

d.  Division  of  Ventilation,  established  July  i,  1912, 

looks   after  ventilation  of  moving  picture  thea- 
ters, churches,  and  public  halls. 

"  Bad     housing    promotes     failure,     stupidity, 
crime,  disease,  and  death." 

5.  Bureau  of  Vital  Statistics. 

Duties : 

a.  "  Points  out  the  path  toward  greater  health  for 
all  and  records  our  progress  in  defeating  dis- 
ease." 

"Auditors  of  the  books  of  Life  and  Death." 


ALL  ABOARDy?"- 

Clean  Chicago!! 


Chicaqo.Chicaqo  Chicc>(go''cn,ao^V)  1, 
"Wbithe^r  ob  wh\Vb(z,r  ob  wbitbe»'.  60  ipvy  ? 
To  oWan  up  *b(Z.  alley 6 

Anik  cVia6e  oa\  \b^  /ly  1 
Tb<Ln  I'll  V)av<t, /^(Z.w<z,r 

6rnaU  co//'in6  to  bay.*' 

CLEAN  UP  WEEK- MAY  5-10, 1913 


ChicaqoHcdthDepttAacatioool  PosUr  Ng|6l 


Deai<,ntAby  Dr4BYou>r)q 


32       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

b.  Issues  burial  permits. 

Now  registers  birth  certificates.  (i6) 
A  moving  picture  film  entitled  "  An  Error  of 
Omission,"  to  illustrate  the  inconvenience  and 
loss  that  may  come  to  any  person  who  can  not 
show  a  birth  certificate,  has  been  prepared  and 
exhibited  in  many  of  the  theaters.  It  is  hoped 
to  arouse  public  interest  so  that  every  baby  will 
be  registered  within  twenty-four  hours  of  its 
birth,  as  is  now  required  by  law. 

6.  Bureau  of  Hospitals,  Baths,  and  Lodging  House.  (17) 

A.  Contagious  Disease  Hospital.     [To  be  opened  1917.] 

Bond  issue  $300,000  voted  (1912)  to  erect  new  hospital. 

B.  Isolation  Hospital  for  smallpox  cases. 

C.  Free  Municipal  Lodging  House  for  homeless  men. 

D.  Twenty    public    baths.     Three    new    ones    to    be    built    at 

cost   of   $20,000   each.     Council    (January,    1916)    appro- 
priated $37,400  for  running  expenses  of  these  bath  houses. 
"  Disease  means  dirt  somewhere." 

7.  Board  of  Examiners  of  Plumbers. 

Required  by  State  Law. 

Independent  of  the  health  department  is  the  city  phy- 
sician^ appointed  by  the  mayor:  salary  $4,000,  with  two 
assistant  physicians.  The  council  appropriated  $8,825  for 
this  department,  19 16.  Why  are  not  these  doctors  under 
the  health  commissioner? 

How  are  dead  animals  removed  from  streets  and  alleys? 

Notify  a  policeman  or  telephone  the  superintendent  of 
streets  in  the  ward.  If  not  removed  within  twenty-four 
hours,  call  up  the  health  department,  because  it  then  be- 
comes a  public  nuisance  and  a  menace  to  health.  The  dead- 
animal  contractor  has  a  contract  with  the  city  through  the 
health  commissioner  by  which  he  must  remove  such  bodies 


-  GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  33 

free  of  charge  and  get  his  pay  from  the  hides  and  profit  to 
a  rendering  plant;  but  he  must  be  notified  only  by  the 
proper  city  department.  This  is  a  round-about  process,  and 
in  the  interest  of  public  health,  cleanliness,  and  good  munic- 
ipal housekeeping,  ought  to  be  made  more  simple  and 
direct. 

A  new  contract  was  made  in  19 12  by  which  motor-wagons 
are  to  be  used  for  removing  dead  animals  from  the  streets. 
Such  motor-wagons  are  already  in  use  for  the  bodies  of 
small  animals,  and  those  for  large  animals  are  being  built. 
This  insures  much  quicker,  more  thorough  service  for  every 
part  of  the  city.  If  the  citizen  could  notify  directly  the 
contractor  instead  of  being  obliged  often  to  call  two  dif- 
ferent city  departments,  another  forward  step  in  municipal 
sanitation  would  be  gained. 

An  illustration  of  the  campaign  to  prevent  disease  being 
waged  by  the  department  of  health  follows. 

During  July  and  August,  191 6,  the  health  department 
exhibited  its  films,  ''  Summer  Babies,"  and  "  An  Error  of 
Omission,"  in  a  large  number  of  moving-pictures  theaters  in 
the  congested  wards  of  the  city.  To  teach  the  necessity  of 
pure  milk  the  photo-play,  *'  The  Man  Who  Learned,"  was 
also  given.  About  260,000  people  saw  these  pictures  and 
thus  gained  a  vivid  lesson  in  health  preservation.  Two  new 
photo-plays,  entitled,  "  Dr.  Killjoy  Was  Right,"  to  illustrate 
typhoid  prevention  and  show  on  the  screen  "  the  high  and 
mighty  tumblers  of  the  germ  family" — the  typhoid  bacilli 
—  and  a  film,  "Life  History  of  a  Fly"  will  soon  be  ex- 
hibited. Nearly  a  half  million  persons  visit  the  600  "  mov- 
ies "  in  Chicago  daily.  The  health  department  has  been 
quick  to  seize  such  an  unrivaled  opportunity  to  secure  ai» 
audience  for  a  campaign  of  health  education.  (18) 


34       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

1916 

$7,324,803.90 

$3,417,659.66 
$1,490,249.24 


School  purposes  for  education  and  buildings $23,625,000 

Public  library,  1916,  for  maintenance 1,131,400 

Scaled  down  under  Juul  law  to  $600,000 
Municipal  tuberculosis   sanitarium    1,040,000 

BACK- YARD  PROVERBS 

"  Have  you  a  '  swell  front  and  a  swill  back '  ?  Does  your  land- 
lord, the  janitor,  do  your  neighbors,  or  you  yourself,  let  waste  and 
garbage  endanger  the  neighborhood  through  carelessness  ?  " —  Dr. 
G.  B.  Young,  ex-Health  Commissioner  of  Chicago.  (19) 

Dr.  Young  has  issued  some  back-yard  proverbs  to  impress  his 
meaning,  reading  as  follows: 

"  Your  back  yard  reflects  your  habits  of  cleanliness. 

"  What  impressions  are  your  neighbors  getting  from  your  back 
yard? 

"  A  dirty  neighbor  is  a  menace  to  neighborhood  health. 

" '  Personal  liberty '  must  of  necessity  be  subservient  to  com- 
munity welfare. 

"  A  dirty  neighbor  will  do  more  than  most  anything  else  to 
depreciate  residence  property  values. 


GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO 


35 


<>'' 


aiiEATfflNQ  3)OLLS 
THE-  KECZSSITV'^'  VZrriTJLATloif 

Aia  POIXVTIOlf  OF  A  CLOStD  -R-OOK 


"If  you  value  your  reputation,  your  health,  or  your  property  — 
keep  clean  and  see  that  your  neighbors  keep  clean." 

The  Fresh-Air  Crusade.  "  Four  breathing  dolls,  two 
mamma  dolls  and  two  baby  dolls,  are  booked  to  cover  a 
good  part  of  the  world  as  missionaries.  They  are  apostles 
of  the  fresh-air  crusade. 
It  begins  to  look  as 
though  they  were  destined 
to  do  more  for  the  cause 
of  ventilation  and  ^resh 
air  than  all  the  talking 
that  all  the  doctors  of  the 
world  have  done  about 
it. 

''The  breathing  dolls 
were  invented  and  set  to 
breathing  by  Dr.  C.  St. 
Clair  Drake  of  the  Chica- 
go health  department.  ( 20) 
They  are  connected  by 
rubber  tubes  with  a  little 
electric  pump  that  pumps 
incense  through  their  nos- 
trils. You  can  see  the 
incense  rise  from  them  in 
puffs,  for  all  the  world  as 
though  they  were  breathing  in  frosty  air.  Two  of  the  dolls 
lie  abed  in  a  tiny  room  with  windows  and  doors  wide  open. 
Two  lie  abed  in  another  tiny  room  with  windows  and  doors 
tight  shut. 

"  One  side  of  each  of  these  rooms  is  a  plate  of  glass. 
And  through  these  plates  of  glass  whoever  looks  gets  the 


J^IS^TTAlti.  IS  J5EAXf£ 
Tsas  tXUca  rEE,3H  ATE.  IS  JUS!  rt^oix& 


36       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

lesson  of  good  ventilation  slap  in  the  face.  One  room  is 
full  of  smoke  and  vapor.  The  glass  is  clouded  with  mist. 
You  can  hardly  see  the  two  dolls  that  lie  abed  there,  and 
you  can't  tell  for  sure  whether  they  are  still  breathing  or 
not. 

"  The  other  has  n't  a  visible  particle  of  smoke  or  vapor 
in  it,  except  for  the  little  puffs  of  incense  that  come  from 
the  nostrils  of  the  dolls.  One  room  is  full  of  fresh  air. 
The  other  is  full  of  foul  air.  One  room  is  well  ventilated. 
The  other  is  n't  ventilated  at  all.  It  is  n't  Hkely  that  any 
one  who  once  sees  this  graphic  comparison  will  ever  sleep 
in  a  closed  room  again." 

Fire  Department.  In  the  early  30's,  v^hen  Chicago 
was  only  a  village  of  frame  shanties,  the  trustees  expended 
most  of  their  energies  planning  to  safeguard  the  village 
from  fire.  No  person  was  allowed  "  to  endanger  the  pub- 
lic safety  by  pushing  a  red-hot  stove-pipe  through  a  board 
wall,"  or  "  carry  open  coals  of  fire  through  the  streets  ex- 
cept in  a  covered  fire-proof  vessel."  All  citizens  were  re- 
quired to  keep  a  fire-bucket  in  the  house  and  on  an  alarm 
of  fire,  hurry  to  the  spot  equipped  with  said  bucket  ready 
for  immediate  use.  The  village  grew  so  fast  a  hook  and 
ladder  company  was  formed  in  1835  and  the  first  fire-engine 
was  purchased  for  $894,  a  wonderful  engine  for  that  day. 
Contrast  the  modern  automobile  fire-engine  costing  $9,000 
now  used  by  the  city. 

Chicago  now  values  her  fire-fighting  equipment  at  more 
than  $3,000,000.  At  the  head  of  the  force,  two  thousand 
strong,  is  the  fire  marshal,  appointed  by  the  mayor  and  paid 
$8,000  for  his  hazardous  work.  His  position  is  no  sine- 
cure ;  he  actually  leads  his  men  at  many  of  the  fires  and  must 
be  an  experienced  firefighter  to  hold  his  place.     He  has 


■    GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  37 

six  assistant  marshals,  one  of  whom  has  charge  of  fire- 
prevention  work. 

The  entire  city  is  divided  into  twenty  fire  districts,  with 
a  chief  and  battalion  of  firemen  in  each  district.  The  or- 
ganization and  discipline  are  military  in  effect,  and  Chicago 
has  the  reputation  of  possessing  one  of  the  best  organized 
and  bravest  bodies  of  firemen  in  the  country. 

The  equipment  includes  nearly  one  thousand  horses,  six 
fireboats,  steam  and  chemical  engines,  automobile-engines 
and  trucks,  hook  and  ladder  companies,  and  old-fashioned 
hose  carts.  There  is  great  need  of  a  new  high-pressure 
water  system  to  protect  Chicago's  sky-scrapers. 

The  anniversary  of  the  great  Chicago  fire,  October  g, 
191 3,  was  celebrated  throughout  the  State  by  the  inaugura- 
tion of  a  fire-prevention  day.  Governor  Dunne  by  procla- 
mation recommended  its  observance.  Property-owners 
were  urged  to  clean  up  their  property  so  as  to  lessen  the 
hazard.  Fire  drills  were  held  in  many  schools  and  shops, 
and  an  effort  made  to  have  rubbish  disposed  of  so  that  it 
would  not  increase  the  fire  risk. 

Governor  Dunne  in  his  proclamation  said :  **  Statistics 
show  fire  waste  is  increasing  annually  in  the  State  of  Illi- 
nois, and  last  year  it  averaged  $1,000,000  a  month.  Be- 
sides this,  nearly  four  hundred  people  in  this  State  lost 
their  lives  through  the  agency  of  fires.  No  nation  or  State 
can  long  endure  the  waste  and  drain  upon  its  resources  due 
to  fire,  and  the  fact  that  so  many  of  them  are  largely  pre- 
ventable is  a  reproach  to  our  people  and  needs  immediate 
attention  and  remedy."  (21) 

What  can  we  do  as  public-spirited  citizens  to  decrease  this 
appalling  waste  from  fires?  Here  is  another  reason  for 
frequent  "municipal  house  cleaning  days." 


38       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

POLICE   DEPARTMENT    OF    CHICAGO 

Under  the  ordinance,  passed  January  27,  191 3,  for  the 
reorganization  of  the  police  department  of  Chicago,  the 
general  superintendent,  appointed  by  the  mayor,  with  con- 
sent of  council,  at  a  salary  of  $8,000,  stands  at  the  head. 
"  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  general  superintendent  of 
police  to  preserve  the  peace  and  secure  good  order  and 
cleanliness  within  the  city  of  Chicago,  and  to  that  end  he 
shall  enforce  all  laws  and  city  ordinances  and  the  orders  of 
the  city  council  and  the  mayor." 

It  takes  an  army  nearly  five  thousand  strong  to  guard 
the  lives  and  property  of  the  city,  and  it  costs  Chicago  tax- 
payers for  this  service  over  $7,325,000  this  year. 

The  active  force  of  men  is  now  directed  by  the  first 
deputy  superintendent  under  the  new  semi-military  organi- 
zation. The  second  deputy  superintendent  must  not  be  a 
member  of  the  police  force,  but  is  of  equal  rank  and  salary 
with  the  first  deputy.  Both  are  under  civil-service  rules. 
The  second  deputy  has  charge  of  all  departmental  property, 
records,  inspections,  and  drills.  He  has  charge  of  the 
moving-picture  bureau,  the  lost  and  found  department,  and 
the  supervision  of  moral  conditions  in  the  city.  Should  you 
have  any  complaint  to  make  about  the  conduct  of  the 
policeman  near  your  home,  report  to  the  second  deputy  su- 
perintendent. He  also  provides  a  system  of  credit  and  de- 
merit marks  to  be  charged  up  to  the  men  by  their  command- 
ing officers  during  drills,  both  mounted  and  unmounted,  and 
these  marks  have  a  decided  effect  on  their  records  toward 
retention  in  the  service  and  for  promotion.  This  is  one 
way  to  secure  good  discipline  among  the  force. 

A  brief  account  of  the  various  bureaus  under  which  the 


'    GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  39 

department  is  organized  will  best  show  the  great  number 
of  services  the  force  renders. 

1 .  Two  motor-boats .  rescue  drowning  persons,  recover 
bodies  and  property  from  the  water. 

2.  Patrolmen  assigned  to  the  forty-five  police  precincts 
into  which  the  city  is  divided.  These  men  cover  the  199 
square  miles  of  the  city's  area. 

3.  Traffic  squad.  The  pick  of  the  force  are  assigned 
to  guard  the  street-crossings  in  the  loop  and  they  prevent 
many  accidents  every  day. 

4.  Mounted  poHce  —  about  175. 

5.  Ambulance  and  patrol-wagon  service.  There  are 
police  ambulances  for  accident  cases  in  eight  wards;  many 
automobile-patrols  and  automobile-ambulances  are  now  in 
use,  a  modern  feature,  increasing  many  fold  the  effective- 
ness of  this  service. 

6.  Motorcycle  squad  for  rapid  service :  to  control  speed- 
ing on  the  city  highways  and  for  special  strike  duty.  The 
tracking  of  stolen  automobiles  is  another  useful  service  of 
this  swiftly  moving  squad. 

7.  Vehicle  Bureau.  Issues  licenses  to  peddlers,  public 
automobiles,  hack-drivers,  garages,  stables,  and  all  motor- 
cycles and  express-wagons. 

8.  Bureau  of  Vagrancy.  Arrests,  brings  to  punishment, 
or  deports  all  suspicious  persons  and  loiterers  who  seem  to 
have  no  regular  business.  The  article,  "  The  Forgotten 
Army,"  by  H.  M.  Hyde,  Chicago  Tribune,  September  4, 
191 3,  gives  a  different  view  of  Chicago's  army  of  vagrants. 
The  article  is  well  worth  reading. 

9.  The  Dog-Pound  Master  imprisons  stray  or  vicious 
dogs,  looks  after  the  dog  licenses,  and  kills  dangerous  ani- 
mals. 


40       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

10.  Detective  Bureau  identifies  and  keeps  track  of  crim- 
inals by  aid  of  photographs  (the  "  rogue's  gallery  "),  finger- 
prints, etc. 

11.  Moving-picture  Bureau  has  the  censorship  of  films, 
postal  and  picture  cards.  This  bureau  suppresses  hundreds 
of  indecent  films  and  postcards  every  year.  It  also  inspects 
theaters  and  arcades.  The  movies  furnish  the  only  amuse- 
ment within  reach  of  a  large  part  of  the  population  of 
Chicago.  Over  a  half  million  men,  women,  and  children 
visit  these  shows  every  day.  Of  this  number  over  150,000 
are  children  under  fifteen  years  old.  A  strict  censorship  of 
the  films  in  Chicago  is  very  necessary.^ 

12.  Ten  policewomen  were  appointed  by  the  mayor  July, 
19 13,  and  placed  on  patrol  duty  in  the  dance  halls,  at  bath- 
ing beaches,  and  moving-picture  theaters. ^^  They  report  to 
the  first  deputy  and  are  especially  charged  to  look  after  un- 
protected women,  girls,  and  children.  In  each  of  the  ten 
police-stations  where  women  arrested  are  taken,  there  is  a 
police-matron  to  have  charge  of  such  women.  There  are 
now  about  seventy-five  women  officially  connected  with  the 
department. 

13.  Custodian  of  Lost,  Stolen,  and  Seized  Property. 
About  5,000  packages  of  money,  jewelry,  clothing,  revolvers, 
bicycles,  slot  machines,  were  received  by  the  custodian  dur- 
ing 191 5.  More  than  $15,000  in  cash  was  held  in  trust 
by  him.  Slot  machines  and  all  gambling  outfits  must  be 
destroyed  immediately.  Revolvers  and  all  dangerous 
weapons  taken  mjust  be  dumped  in  the  lake  five  miles  from 
shore.  One  of  the  police  motor-boats  is  used  to  do  this. 
All  unclaimed  property  is  sold  at  public  auction  and  the 
proceeds  turned  into  the  police  pension  fund.     It  is  well  for 

5  See  Report  Gen.  Supt.  of  Police  1912,  pp.  5  and  loi. 
''a  There  are  now  thirty  policewomen. 


'     GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  41 

citizens  to  understand  what  becomes  of  lost  and  stolen  prop- 
erty taken  up  by  the  policemen  and  that  they  must  go  to  the 
custodian's  office  in  the  city  hall  to  recover  such  property. 

Public  Safety.  Stop !  Look !  Listen !  ^  How  can 
each  of  us  help  to  reduce  the  large  and  growing  number 
of  street  accidents?  Every  time  we  dart  across  the  street 
before  the  traffic  policeman's  signal ;  cross  the  street,  or  even 
a  country  road,  without  looking  in  both  directions  for  autos 
and  teams;  attempt  to  drive  over  a  railroad  crossing  after 
the  warning  signal  has  rung,  or  the  flagman  has  given  notice 
the  train  is  coming,  we  wilfully,  to  save  two  minutes'  time, 
run  the  risk  of  death,  or  even  worse,  being  crippled  for  life, 
by  our  lawless  act. 

Let  us  call  things  by  their  right  names.  We  are  law- 
breakers when  we  run  these  risks,  for  no  one  has  any  moral 
right  to  endanger  his  life  and  limbs  in  such  a  reckless 
fashion.  If  private  citizens  would  take  half  the  pains  to 
guard  their  own  lives  that  the  city  police  department 
through  its  fine  traffic  squad,  and  the  railroad  and  street-car 
corporations,  take  to  protect  and  safeguard  us,  the  death 
harvest  from  preventable  street  accidents  would  be  dimin- 
ished fifty  per  cent. 

Teamsters,  truck-drivers,  autoists,  are  finable  if  they  dis- 
obey the  whistle  of  the  traffic  policeman.  There  should  be 
a  similar  ordinance  giving  the  right  to  arrest  and  fine  any 
pedestrian  who  likewise  disobeys  the  traffic  signal.  Until 
the  council  puts  such  an  ordinance  into  the  municipal  code, 
all  citizens  can  help  reduce  the  dangers  from  Chicago's  con- 
gested streets  many- fold  if  they  will  simply  render  implicit 

®  See  article  by  F.  V.  Whiting,  by  this  title  "  Outlook,"  August  23, 
1913.  Also  Chicago  City  Manual  for  1912,  pp.  167-171;  Mayor's 
letter  on  "  The  Automobile  and  Motorcycle  Peril." 


42       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

obedience  to  the  traffic  signal  —  one  whistle  allowing  all 
vehicles  to  move  north  and  south;  two  whistles,  east  and 
west.  The  pedestrian's  opportunity  is  when  the  city  guard- 
ian of  public  safety  has  halted  one  of  the  moving  lines. 

Chicago  Railways  Company  has  a  Public  Safety  Bureau 
and  exhibits  moving  pictures  to  illustrate  its  safety  direc- 
tions. The  company  will  gladly  loan  its  films  to  any  or- 
ganization or  school  desiring  to  teach  its  useful  public-safety 
measures.  A  Public-Safety  Commission  of  twenty-five 
citizens  was  organized  (September,  1913)  by  the  coroner 
of  Cook  County,  to  investigate  the  great  number  of  deaths 
in  the  county  through  accidents  and  to  suggest  ways  and 
means  to  enlist  the  public  in  a  campaign  to  safeguard  human 
life  on  streets  and  highways. 

SCHOOL  SYSTEM    OF   CHICAGO. 

The  board  of  education,  of  twenty-one  members,  five  of 
whom  are  now  women,  are  appointed  by  the  mayor,  with 
the  consent  of  the  council,  and  have  entire  control  of  Chi- 
cago's great  public-school  system,  with  three  exceptions. 
The  council  must  concur  whenever  bonds  are  issued,  sites 
purchased,  or  school  buildings  are  erected.  The  board  ap- 
points the  general  superintendent,  at  present  John  D.  Shoop 
who  succeeded  Mrs.  Ella  Flagg  Young,  an  educator,  retired 
since  191 5,  whose  work  for  the  Chicago  schools  was  re- 
markable. In  the  words  of  Mrs.  Young,  the  aim  of  the 
school  system  is :  "  To  invigorate  and  strengthen  the  chil- 
dren for  their  future  as  citizens  of  this  repubhc." 

The  first  school  building  owned  by  Chicago  was  built  in 
1844  on  the  present  site  of  the  Tribune  Building,  Madison 
and  Dearborn  Streets.     This  block  is  still  school  land. 

The   following  quotation   from  Beard's  American  City 


^GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  43 

Government  J  p.  136,  is  a  good  illustration  of  the  "  un- 
earned increment "  in  land  values  in  Chicago  and  what  in- 
come the  city  schools  might  have  had:  "  In  1818  —  when 
Illinois  became  a  State  —  the  United  States  government 
gave  the  square  mile  between  State,  Madison,  Halsted,  and 
Twelfth  Streets,  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  to  be  held  in  trust 
for  the  support  of  the  public  schools  and  the  education  of 
the  children  of  Chicago.  Except  for  one  block,  between 
Madison,  Dearborn,  State,  and  Monroe  Streets,  nearly  all 
this  square  mile  was  sold  about  seventy  years  ago,  for  less 
than  $40,000.  Within  fifteen  years  after  it  was  sold  this 
square  mile  was  worth  $6,000,000.  To-day  its  value 
is  hundreds  of  millions  of  dollars  —  without  improvements. 
The  rent  for  this  square  mile  of  land  would  be  sufficient  to 
support  for  all  time  the  entire  school  systems  of  the  State 
of  Illinois  without  an  additional  dollar  of  taxation."  This 
statement  was  made  in  1909  by  three  former  members  of 
the  Chicago  school-board.  The  *'  unearned  increment  "  is 
the  great  increase  in  the  value  of  land  due  entirely  to  in- 
crease in  population  and  in  no  wise  to  any  effort  or  labor 
on  the  part  of  the  owner. 

"If  Chicago's  standing  army  of  400,000  school  children 
were  formed  in  military  order,  eight  abreast,  this  army 
would  make  a  line  fifty-two  miles  long  —  longer  than  any 
street  in  the  city."  To  care  for  this  army,  the  city  main- 
tains three  hundred  public  and  high  schools  with  seven 
thousand  teachers  at  an  expenditure  for  19 16  of  $16,500,- 
000  for  running  expenses  and  $6,000,000  for  new  school 
buildings  —  a  grand  total  of  $22,500,000  for  public  edu- 
cation.'^ 

"^  Much  of  this  material  was  prepared  in  the  form  of  charts  by  the 
Chicago  Woman's  City  Chib,  through  whose  courtesy  it  is  used  here. 


44        ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

What  has  Chicago  to  offer  in  return  for  this  vast  sum, 
which  forms  one-third  of  the  taxes  collected  for  all  pur- 
poses? A  child  may  enter  a  kindergarten  at  five  and  pass 
through  the  eight  grades,  then  four  years  in  high  school, 
and  two  years  at  the  city  normal  (22)  —  should  the  boy  or 
girl  desire  to  teach, —  eleven  years'  training  at  public  ex- 
pense. A  child  may  have  physical,  technical,  manual,  and 
domestic-science  training  in  addition  to  the  regular  mental 
work,  with  music,  drawing,  painting,  and  all  commercial 
branches  thrown  in.  For  the  workers  who  are  ambitious 
for  an  education,  the  city  provides  evening  schools  with  a 
regularly  paid  corps  of  instructors.  October,  19 16,  there 
was  a  small  army  of  30,000,  many  over  twenty-one,  enrolled 
in  these  "  after-supper  "  classes. 

Notice  this  list  of  special  classes  maintained  for  the  deaf, 
blind,  crippled,  and  subnormal  children;  open-air  and  low- 
temperature  schools  for  tuberculous  children;  a  parental 
school  for  truants  at  Bowmanville,  caring  for  three  hun- 
dred and  twenty-five  boys  under  fourteen;  and  a  school  at 
the  Juvenile  Detention  Home  for  delinquents;  apprentice, 
vocational,  agricultural,  and  continuation  schools.  In 
many  of  the  crowded  districts  the  schoolhouse  is  used  as  a 
social  center  for  the  neighborhood  and  provides  a  free  hall 
for  all  kinds  of  public  meetings,  clubs,  dances,  and  classes 
of  every  kind,  all  under  suitable  supervision,  often  a  paid 
social  director.  The  people  of  Chicago  are  beginning  to 
use  their  tremendous  investment  in  school  lands  and  build- 
ings seven  days  a  week  and  twelve  months  a  year  instead 
of  letting  it  stand  idle  one-third  of  the  time. 

What  of  the  child  who  must  leave  school  and  go  to  work  ? 
The  board  of  education  holds  out  a  helping  hand  to  aid 
him  in  finding  a  suitable  job  through  a  new  bureau  of  vo- 


-    GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  45 

cational  supervision.  This  bureau  keeps  a  list  of  employers 
of  child  labor,  investigates  the  positions,  consults  teachers, 
employers,  parents,  and  the  child,  and  then  tries  to  get  the 
young  worker  into  a  suitable  position  for  which  he  is 
naturally  fitted. 

CHICAGO   PUBLIC    LIBRARY 

Chicago  owes  her  public  library  to  the  efforts  of  an  Eng- 
lishman, Thomas  Hughes,  who  secured  a  donation  of  seven 
thousand  volumes  in  England  immediately  after  the  great 
fire  of  1 87 1  and  persuaded  even  Queen  Victoria  to  con- 
tribute some  of  the  books.  The  first  volume  of  this  col- 
lection, bearing  the  Queen's  autograph,  is  still  exhibited  in 
the  library  if  any  interested  visitor  requests  a  view  of  the 
book. 

The  present  beautiful  building  houses  over  400,(X>o  vol- 
umes and  serves  more  than  100,000  regular  patrons  hold- 
ing readers'  cards.  In  the  reading,  circulation,  reference, 
public  documents,  civics,  art,  and  children's  rooms,  the  gen- 
eral and  special  needs  of  readers  are  met.  A  recent  in- 
novation is  a  "  study  room  for  women,"  on  the  fourth 
floor,  to  serve  the  needs  of  club  women  in  preparing  club 
programs  and  for  the  study  of  topics  included  in  all  gov- 
ernmental subjects  of  interest  to  the  new  woman  voter 
who  desires  to  use  her  ballot  intelligently. 

The  present  librarian  (23)  won  his  position  through  com- 
petitive examination  —  a  pioneer  experiment  in  civil-service 
examinations  for  such  difificult  and  important  positions. 
It  proved  a  decided  success  in  securing  an  efficient,  pro- 
gressive librarian. 

A  dozen  branch  reading-rooms,  many  in  schools  and  field 
houses  in  the  parks,  and  several  circulation  centers  are  also 


46       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

maintained.     Many  delivery-stations   for  the  convenience 
of  readers  in  distant  parts  of  the  city  are  maintained. 

The  Hbrary  is  governed  by  a  board  of  nine  directors  ap- 
pointed by  the  mayor  with  the  consent  of  the  council,  for 
three  years,  and  they  serve  M^ithout  pay.  The  library  is 
supported  by  a  special  tax  of  one  mill  w^hich  is  levied  on 
all  taxable  property  in  the  city,  but  this  is  scaled  down 
under  the  Juul  law. 

MUNICIPAL    RECREATION 

References  : 

1.  Annual     Report:     Special     Park     Commission,     Chicago,     1915. 

(This  shows  what  can  be  done  with  a  small  sum  of  money 
wisely  used.) 

2.  The  Park  Governments  of  Chicago,  Chicago  Bureau  of  Public 

Efficiency,  December,  191 1.  (Following  facts  are  largely  based 
on  this  admirable  report.  All  the  reports  of  the  Bureau  of 
Public  Efficiency  are  of  exceeding  value  and  interest.  They 
are  supplied  without  charge  to  any  one  who  desires  them.) 
Address  the  director,  Harris  S.  Keeler,  315  Plymouth  Court, 
Chicago. 

3.  Map  of  the  park  districts  of  Chicago.  (24) 

"  The  Chicago  park  situation  is  unparalleled  in  any  city 
of  this  country."  This  bad  condition  is  due  to  the  large 
number  of  independent  park  districts.  Chicago  is  famous 
the  world  over  for  its  parks,  playgrounds,  and  boulevards ; 
but  the  city  sadly  needs  consolidation  of  park  management 
under  the  city  government.  There  are  sixteen  separate 
park  governments  within  the  city  of  Chicago,  not  counting 
the  special  park  commission,  an  arm  of  the  city  government. 
Fifteen  of  these  governments  are  independent  taxing  bodies, 
the  Lincoln  Park  Commission  having  no  separate  taxing 
power.  Existing  park  boards  now  spend  approximately 
six  million  dollars  annually.     Do  the  people  of  Chicago  re- 


PARK  DISTRICTS 
AND  PARKS 

within  the 
CITY  OF  CHICAGO 

UNDER  CONTHOL  OF 
PARK  COMMISSIONS 

Solid  BlBi;k 


Large  Park 
Boulevard 

Small  Park  g 

Fieldhouse  and  Playgroand  • 

SmaU  Park  with  Fieldhouse  _ 

and  Playground  13 

Bathing  Beach  # 

UNDER  CONTROL  OF 

CITY    GOVERNMENT 

Park  ^ 

Playground  o 

Bathing  Beach  O 

Boundary  of  Park  District  .mmmi 

Msion  of  Towns  within   ^— » 

City 


Prepared  by 

CniCAGO  BUREAU  Or 
PUBUC     EFFICIEKCT 

1913 


48       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

ceive  dollar  for  dollar  in  value  for  this  large  expendi- 
ture ? 

Moreover  there  is  a  general  statute,  applying  to  territory 
not  within  any  existing  park  district,  under  which  addi- 
tional park  districts  may  be  established  by  petition  signed 
by  one  hundred  voters,  to  the  county  judge,  and  a  special 
election  to  approve  such  petition  for  a  park  district.  Five 
commissioners  are  elected  to  manage  the  new  district. 
These  commissioners  have  power  to  levy  a  special  park  tax. 
The  commissioners  serve  without  pay,  and  may  issue  bonds 
if  permitted  by  the  voters.  This  law  applies  to  the  entire 
State  and  under  its  authority  thousands  of  park  dis- 
tricts have  been  created. 

The  park  districts  of  Chicago  are  very  unequally  divided 
among  the  three  sides  of  the  city.  The  entire  area  is  now 
over  3,500  acres;  but  it  is  not  distributed  according  to  popu- 
lation and  the  great  needs  of  the  people  in  the  congested 
wards  of  the  West  and  Northwest  Sides. 

The  park  governments  (25)  as  now  organized  can  not 
easily  be  controlled  by  the  people  of  Chicago.  The  West 
and  Lincoln  Park  Boards  are  appointed  by  the  governor  of 
Illinois  and  the  South  Park  Board  by  the  circuit  judges  of 
Cook  County.  The  park  employees  since  191 1  have  been 
under  the  civil-service  rules  of  the  State.  Consolidation 
of  the  several  park  governments  with  the  city  government 
would  centralize  control  and  responsibility  and  make  the 
government  of  the  parks  more  democratic.  The  saving 
thus  effected  is  estimated  at  a  half  a  million  of  dollars  a 
year.  That  sum  of  money  would  go  a  great  way  in  extend- 
ing Chicago's  system  of  small  parks  and  playgrounds.  The 
special  park  commission  under  the  city  government  does 
wonders  with  its  small  appropriation  from  the  city  council. 


-  GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  49 

The  South  Park  Board  has  the  great  advantage  of  the  im- 
mensely vahiable  property  in  the  loop  to  tax  and  therefore 
has  more  money  than  it  can  spend.  This  naturally  leads 
to  extravagance  and  waste,  while  the  crowded  West  Side, 
with  its  congested  foreign  population,  and  dire  need  of 
public  recreation  parks,  swimming  pools,  and  field  houses, 
is  too  poor  to  provide  all  these  facilities  unaided.  The 
only  sensible  method  is  to  fit  expenditure  to  needs  and 
spend  the  South  Side  surplus  on  West  Side  necessities. 

Chicago's  Problems.  One  of  Chicago's  most  difficult 
problems  is  the  large  percentage  of  foreign-born  whites  in 
the  city  —  now  35.7  per  cent.  If  to  these  foreign-born 
persons  are  added  those  of  foreign  or  mixed  parentage, 
Chicago's  percentage  leaps  up  to  77.5.  Chicago  ranks  third 
among  the  cities  of  the  United  States  in  its  population, 
foreign  born  and  of  foreign-born  parentage.  New  York 
heads  the  list  with  78.6  per  cent.;  Milwaukee  has  exactly 
the  same  percentage  —  78.6  per  cent. ;  Chicago  is  third, 
with  77.5  per  cent.  (26) 

In  common  with  all  large  American  cities,  Chicago  shares 
the  problems  created  by  the  presence  of  such  numbers  of 
the  foreign  born,  alien  to  our  language  and  our  ways,  yet 
eager  to  learn  both  and  share  in  our  opportunities  for  work 
and  the  chance  to  make  good  in  business  and  industry. 
We  must  never  forget  our  heavy  debt  to  the  strong  muscles 
and  willing  hands  of  these  strangers  in  our  midst.  They 
build  and  elevate  our  railroads,  dig  our  drainage  canals 
and  sewers;  man  our  factories,  build  our  sky-scrapers  and 
make  possible  all  our  great  manufacturing  industries. 
They  give  us  the  best  they  have,  their  strength  and  health. 
What  return  do  we  make  for  this  necessary  service?  Too 
often  the  slum  district  is  our  answer. 


50       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

Chicago  is  face  to  face  with  large  problems  of  municipal 
improvement  that  must  be  solved  soon,  or  the  city  cannot 
go  forward.  A  sanitary,  economical,  modern  disposal  of 
garbage  and  all  kinds  of  city  waste  heads  the  list,  a  system 
big  enough  to  care  for  every  block  in  the  city  (27) ;  rapid, 
safe,  cheap  transportation  that  will  distribute  the  working 
population  away  from  the  congested  centers  into  suburbs 
where  there  is  land  suitable  for  homes;  the  best  way  to 
**  burn  our  own  smoke  "  and  clear  the  atmosphere ;  the  re- 
demption of  the  lake  front ;  consolidation  of  twenty-two  sep- 
arate governments  within  Chicago:  a  suitable  harbor  — 
these  seem  to  be  the  most  pressing  of  Chicago's  problems. 

John  Fiske  was  right  when  he  wrote :,"  The  modern 
city  has  come  to  be  a  huge  corporation  for  carrying  on  a 
huge  business  with  many  branches."  It  is  coming  to  be 
more  human  than  a  corporation  and  to  mean  a  business 
proposition  plus  social  service. 

SANITARY   DISTRICT 

Of  the  sanitary  commissioners  and  sanitary  district 
trustees,  throughout  the  State,  the  most  powerful  and  the 
best  paid  are  those  of  the  sanitary  district  of  Chicago. 
Study  the  map  of  the  sanitary  district,  p.  51.  The  san- 
itary district  of  Chicago  is  a  municipal  corporation  created 
by  the  act  of  1889  to  provide  a  drainage  system  for  the 
"preservation  of  the  public  health"  by  purifying  the  wa- 
ter supply.  This  is  to  be  accomplished  finally  by  turning 
all  the  sewage  in  the  sanitary  district  into  the  drainage  canal 
and  away  from  Lake  Michigan. 

The  excavated  portion  of  the  sanitary  canal  begins  at 
Robey  Street,  Chicago,  and  runs  about  thirty  miles  to  the 
controlling  works  at  Lockport.     Fifteen  miles  of  this  main 


MAP 

Of    rHE 


S/)N/mRy  DISTRICT 


CHIC/)GO 

A/Ofi7?f  SHOPS  CMNf/£L 
Cy)LUMET-SA6CH/iN/V£L  cr^oe/t  cowxvcrw^ 

o/STK/cr.  rocooKCOUNTy 
ANO  c/ry  o^  CM/CAS o 


SeoAfo/Af//»s 
»     «     «    »    -♦     * 


52       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

channel  is  cut  through  soHd  rock.  It  cuts  through  the 
watershed,  once  a  glacial  moraine,  at  Summit,  Illinois,  and 
reverts  to  preglacial  conditions  by  reversing  the  current  in 
the  Chicago  river  and  causing  that  river  to  flow  west  and 
south  instead  of  into  the  lake. 

The  entire  canal  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  in  the 
world  owing  to  difficulties  surmounted  in  its  construction 
and 'to  its  purpose.  The  canal  was  opened  by  admitting 
the  required  amount  of  water  from  Lake  Michigan  in 
January  1900. 

There  are  nine  trustees  elected  for  six  years,  in  the 
November  elections,  only  three  being  chosen  at  once.  The 
original  act  has  been  amended  several  times  to  increase  the 
territory  included  in  the  district  and  the  powers  of  the  san- 
itary trustees  by  allowing  them  to  develop  and  sell  the 
electric  power  created  by  the  canal.  The  sanitary  board 
sells  the  electricity  developed  at  Lockport,  and  the  cities  of 
Joliet,  Lockport,  and  part  of  Chicago  are  lighted  from  this 
current :  also  the  Chicago  City  Hall ;  Lincoln  Park,  West 
and  South  Side  systems  (in  part),  and  the  County  Build- 
ing. It  costs  about  fifteen  cents  an  hour  to  light  brilliantly 
the  council  chamber  of  the  Chicago  City  Hall  from  this 
municipally  generated  electric  current  —  a  striking  illus- 
tration of  the  difference  in  cost  of  a  commodity  manufac- 
tured by  a  public  instead  of  a  private  corporation. 

The  sanitary  trustees  have  very  large  powers  of  taxation 
and  bond  issue.  The  employees  of  the  district  are  not  un- 
der any  civil-service  law,  and  appointments  are  largely  made 
for  political  instead  of  merit  reasons.  The  man  who  con- 
trols the  vote  gets  the  "  job  "  every  time !  This  is  a  seri- 
ous defect  in  the  law  because  of  the  millions  of  dollars  ex- 
pended by  the  sanitary  board.     The  drainage  canal  has 


'•^-    GOVERNMENT  OF  CHICAGO  53 

cost  the  people  over  eighty-five  millions  already,  and  con- 
tracts are  pending  in  the  construction  of  the  Sag-Calumet 
branch  canal  that  call  for  many  millions  more.  Such  huge 
expenditures  demand  honest,  efficient  work  and  strict  ac- 
count of  every  dollar  spent  if  the  tax-payers  get  a  just 
return  for  their  money.  The  salary  of  the  trustees  is  large 
—  $5,000  annually  —  and  the  president  of  the  board  has 
$7,500.  These  increased  salaries  have  been  in  force  since 
July  I,  191 1.  (Rev.  Stat.,  1912,  ch.  24,  sec.  346.)  This 
is  another  reason  the  work  of  the  board  should  be  carefully 
watched  and  only  men  of  the  highest  character,  who  will 
serve  the  public   faithfully,  be  elected  as  trustees.     (28) 

28  refers  to  non-partizan  organization  of  Council  Committees.     See 
pp.  224-225,  Appendix  D. 


CHAPTER  III 
TOWNS  AND  TOWNSHIPS  IN  ILLINOIS 

References  : 

1.  Forman:     Advanced  Civics,  ch.  xxvii. 

(Hist,  town  and  township  government  in  general.) 

2.  Forman:     American  Republic,  chs.  xxiii,  xxiv.     (In  general.) 

3.  J.  A.  Fairlie:     Town  and  County  Government  in  illinois;  Re- 

port Joint-Leg.  Com.,  47th  Gen.  Ass'y,  1912,  Vol  II. 

4.  M.    H.    Newell :     Township    Government    in   Illinois,    1904.     111. 

Hist.  Pubs.,  No.  9,  pp.  467-504. 

5.  Revised  Statutes,  ch.  139. 

I.  Meaning  of  Terms.  There  is  great  confusion  in 
the  use  of  the  terms,  tozvn,  toumship,  civil  and  congressional 
townships,  and  incorporated  town  throughout  the  State. 
The  following  definitions  are  based  on  the  Revised  Statutes 
and  decisions  of  the  Illinois  Supreme  Court : 

The  terms  town,  township,  and  incorporated  town  are  used  in 
various  ways  to  describe  (i)  geographical  and  (2)  civil  or  gov- 
ernmental divisions  of  the  county  or  State,  as  follows: 

"  I.  The  term  township,  or  its  abbreviation  town,  is  used  to  de- 
scribe a  geographical  division  of  land,  approximately  six  miles 
square.  This  is  also  known  as  a  congressional  township,  because 
its  boundaries  were  determined  by  the  United  States  governmental 
survey  under  an  act  of  Congress. 

"  2.  The  term  township,  or  its  abbreviation  town,  is  also  used 
to  designate  a  civil  division  of  the  county.  This  civil  township, 
or  town,  is  an  involuntary  governmental  agency;  that  is,  it  is  im- 
posed upon  the  people  living  within  the  territory  which  it  em- 

54 


TOWNS  AND  TOWNSHIPS  IN  ILLINOIS      55 

braces  by  a  vote  of  the  electors  of  the  entire  county,  rather  than 
by  a  vote  of  the  electors  who  live  within  its  boundaries. 

"3.  The  term  tozvn,  or  incorporated  town,  as  it  is  more  fre- 
quently used,  denotes  a  municipal  corporation  which  in  all  essen- 
tial respects  is  identical  with  the  municipal  corporation  known  as 
a  village.^  The  incorporated  town  or  village  differs  from  the  civil 
town  or  township  in  that  it  is  a  voluntary  municipal  corporation 
organized  by  the  voters  living  within  the  territory  included  in  the 
town  or  village,  whereas  the  simple  town  or  township  is  an  invol- 
untary governmental  agency,  as  explained  above." 

II.  How  Towns  Are  Formed.  Any  county  in  Illi- 
nois may  be  divided  into  towns  whenever  a  majority  of  the 
voters  at  any  general  election  approve  the  proposition.  In 
that  case  it  is  the  duty  of  the  county  board  to  appoint  three 
commissioners  to  make  the  division.  The  commissioners 
must  make  the  towns  coincide  with  congressional  townships 
if  possible  and  must  select  names  for  them;  but  no  two 
towns  in  the  State  may  have  the  same  name.^ 

"In  1910  there  were  1430  civil  townships,  or  towns,  in  the 
eighty-five  counties  of  Illinois  under  township  organization. 
Most  of  them  are  rural  communities  with  a  population  from  1,000 
to  2,000.  But,  except  in  Chicago,  where  the  townships  have  been 
practically  abolished  since  1903,  the  Illinois  townships  include 
cities  and  villages  within  their  geographical  limits;  so  there  are 
a  number  of  townships  of  from  10,000  to  60,000  population.  The 
township  of  Joliet,  for  instance,  contains  16,000  inhabitants  out- 

^  "  This  does  not  mean  that  the  powers  of  a  village  organized  under 
the  Cities  and  Villages  Act  may  be  exactly  the  same  as  the  powers  of 
an  incorporated  town,  because  the  incorporated  town,  in  most  cases, 
was  incorporated  under  a  special  act  of  the  Legislature  passed  prior 
to  the  constitution  of  1870  and  under  and  by  virtue  of  which  the  town 
still  exercises  such  power  as  it  has.  A  special  charter  like  this  might 
confer  other  or  different  powers  than  those  conferred  upon  a  village 
organized  under  the  Cities  and  Villages  Act." 

2  Rev.  Stat.,  ch.   139,  sec.  1-7. 


56       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

side  of  the  city  of  Joliet.  There  are  also  eight  cities  in  Ilhnois 
coextensive  with  townships  —  East  St.  Louis,  Springfield  (Capitol 
Tw'p.),  Evanston  ("Town  of  the  City  of  Evanston"),  (i)  Rock 
Island,  Moline,  Macomb,  Berwyn,  and  Belleville.  The  village  of 
Oak  Park  is  also  coextensive  with  the  township  of  the  same  name." 

The  city  of  Cairo  is  coextensive  with  the  election 'pre- 
cinct of  the  same  name.  Cairo's  county,  Alexander,  is  a 
"  non-township  "  county.  These  facts  illustrate  the  truth 
of  Dr.  Fairlie's  conclusion  that  the  "  system  of  local  gov- 
ernment in  Illinois  as  a  whole  is  more  complicated  and  con- 
fusing than  in  any  other  State."  ^ 

III.  The  Town  Legislature.  The  General  Assem- 
bly of  the  State  and  the  county  board  are  representative 
bodies  elected  by  the  voters.  On  the  other  hand,  in  the 
town  the  law-making  body  is  the  voters  themselves  assem- 
bled in  a  town-  or  mass-meeting.  This  means  a  pure 
democracy  and  is  the  only  instance  of  such  kind  of  govern- 
ment in  Illinois.  The  annual  town-meeting  is  held  the  first 
Tuesday  in  April.  This  is  the  months  for  all  regular  local 
elections  in  Illinois  except  that  for  the  county  officers,  which 
occurs  in  November  at  the  same  time  as  the  election  for 
State  officers,  congressmen,  United  States  senators,^  and 
Presidential  electors. 

Towns  lying  wholly  within  the  limits  of  a  city  elect  town 
officers  on  the  same  day  as  the  city  elections,  the  third 
Tuesday  in  April,  except  in  Chicago,  Evanston,  and  several 

3  Town  and  County  Government  in  Illinois,  by  John  A.  Fairlie,  in 
Report  of  Joint-Legislative  Com.,  47th  General  Assembly,  1912,  Vol. 
II.  Also  see  article,  same  title  and  author,  in  Annals  Am.  Acad.,  May 
I9I3>  PP-  i-4>  9-12.  Dr.  Fairlie's  reports  are  classics  on  the  very 
difficult  subject  of  local  government  in  Illinois. 

*  Seventeenth  Amendment,  Constitution  U.  S.,  1913.  Popular  elec- 
tion U.  S.  senators. 


TOWNS  AND  TOWNSHIPS  IN  ILLINOIS      57 

other  cities  where  the  old  towns  are  practically  abolished 
and  the  work  of  the  town  officers  performed  by  the  city 
officials.  The  business  of  the  town-meeting,  presided  over 
by  a  chairman  called  a  moderator,  is  now  very  slight :  to 
elect  town  officers,  hear  reports,  provide  for  keeping  the 
roads  clear  of  stray  cattle,  and  a  few  other  duties.  The 
town  government  is  for  rural  communities,  and  is  very  much 
out  of  date  for  cities  and  large  villages.  In  New  England 
and  in  the  rural  counties  of  Illinois  under  township  or- 
ganization, the  town-meeting  is  still  "  a  school  for  citizen- 
ship." 

IV.  Town  Executive  Officers.  The  town  officers 
are  a  supervisor  (with  assistant  supervisors  in  the  more 
populous  towns),  tozirn  clerk,  assessor,  collector,  now 
elected  for  two-year  terms ;  ^  three  commissioners  of  high- 
ways, elected  for  three  years,  one  retiring  each  year ;  ^ 
justices  of  the  peace  and  constables,  from  two  to  five  ac- 
cording to  population,  elected  every  four  years.  These 
town  officers  are  paid  by  the  day  for  actual  services,  or  by 
fee.  It  would  be  much  better  if  they  were  paid  annual 
salaries  and  required  to  render  strict  account  of  all  fees 
received.  There  is  a  town  hoard  of  health,  consisting  of 
the  supervisor,  assessor,  and  town  clerk.  Also  a  board  of 
toivn  auditors,  made  up  of  the  supervisor,  clerk,  and  justices 
of  the  peace,  that  examines  all  accounts  of  the  town 
offices. 

Supervisor.  In  counties  under  township  organization, 
except  Cook  County,  the  supervisor  acts  in  two  capacities : 
as  chief  executive  for  the  town  and  as  a  member  of  the 
county  board.     As  a  town  officer  he  handles  all  town  funds 

5  Since  April,  1910.    Rev.  Stat.,  ch.  139,  sec.  154. 

6  May  elect  only  one,  if  voters  of  township  choose. 


58       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

except  school  money  ;'^  is  ex-officio  overseer  of  the  poor, 
and  provides  temporary  rehef  for  persons  in  need,  or  ar- 
ranges for  their  care  in  the  county  infirmary  (poor  house). 
In  towns  of  more  than  4,000  population  there  may  be  a 
special  poor  master  appointed  by  the  county  board.  In 
this  case  there  is  little  left  for  the  supervisor  to  do,  because 
the  town  tax  levy  is  only  a  few  hundred  dollars.  The 
average  for  1912,  outside  of  Cook  County,  was  only  $615. 

Town  Clerk  keeps  the  records  of  town-meetings  and 
all  books,  and  papers  for  the  town ;  certifies  to  the  county 
clerk  the  amount  of  taxes  required  for  town  purposes  and 
acts  as  clerk  for  the  highway  commissioners. 

Assessor  places  a  value  on  all  taxable  real  estate  within 
the  town  and  distributes  and  receives  all  personal  property 
schedules.^  The  election  of  town  assessors  frequently  il- 
lustrates the  "  survival  of  the  unfit,"  because  they  get  re- 
election on  the  promise  to  assess  property  in  the  town  low, 
regardless  of  needs. 

Collector  receives  all  general  taxes  in  the  township  and 
pays  them  over  to  the  proper  officers,  retaining  his  per- 
centage for  collection.^ 

Highway  Commissioners  (one  or  three,  as  the  town- 
ship decides  at  an  election),  levy  the  road  and  bridge  tax. 
This  road  tax  must  now  (1913)  be  paid  in  money.  A  poll 
(head)  tax,  from  one  to  two  dollars,  may  be  levied  for 
road  or  bridge  building.  ^^  This  is  the  only  poll  tax  ever 
levied  in  Illinois.     (See  Chapter  IV,  The  County.) 

"^  Will  act  as  town  treasurer  after  April  1914,  and  custodian  of  the 
road  and  bridge  money.     Session  Laws,  1913. 
^  See  ch.  v,  The  Public  Pocketbook,  p.  91 
^  See  ch.  v,  The  Public  Pocketbook,  p.  95. 
^^  State  Aid  Good  Roads  Law,  in  force,  July  i,  1913. 


TOWNS  AND  TOWNSHIPS  IN  ILLINOIS      59 

Justices  of  the  Peace  ^^  and  Constables  are  the  judi- 
cial officers  of  the  town.  There  must  be  at  least  two  in 
each  township,  so  that  a  case  may  be  changed  from  one 
justice's  court  to  the  other  if  any  partiahty  is  shown  either 
party  in  the  suit.  This  is  called  "  change  of  venue."  The 
number  of  justices  and  constables  can  not  exceed  five.  Al- 
though elected  in  the  township,  their  jurisdiction  extends 
over  the  entire  county. 

The  jurisdiction  of  a  justice  of  the  peace  is  limited  to 
petty,  civil  and  criminal  cases  involving  not  more  than  $200, 
or  where  the  punishment  is  by  fine  only,  not  over  $200  and 
costs.  They  may  try  violations  of  the  dram-shop  law, 
cases  of  assault,  or  assault  and  battery;  but  they  may  ex- 
amine any  case  and  bind  the  offender  over  to  await  the  ac- 
tion of  the  grand  jury.  This  will  hold  him  in  the  county 
jail  until  his  trial  unless  he  can  secure  bail. 

Justices  also  have  the  right  to  perform  marriage  cere- 
monies. They  may  put  any  violent  or  disorderly  person 
under  a  bond  to  keep  the  peace.  Justices  are  paid  by  fees 
and  this  is  often  a  source  of  much  injustice  and  petty  graft. 
Our  petty  courts  would  be  much  improved  if  justices  of 
the  peace  and  constables  were  paid  fixed  salaries  and  the 
fees  collected  went  into  the  town  or  the  county  treasury. 

The  orders  of  the  justice  of  the  peace  are  enforced  by  the 
constable.  It  is  his  duty  also  to  keep  peace  in  the  town  and 
arrest  offenders.  In  counties  without  towtiship  organiza- 
tion, the  justices  and  constables  are  chosen  in  each  elec- 

11  Ridgeville  Township  had  the  distinction  of  having  the  first  woman 
as  justice  of  the  peace  in  Illinois,  Mrs.  Catherine  Waugh  McCulloch, 
of  Evanston.  She  was  elected  April  1907,  and  reelected  April  1909. 
She  held  an  office  for  which  she  could  not  vote  herself,  a  curious 
anomaly.  Two  other  women  have  been  elected  justices  of  the  peace 
in  Illinois  since  Mrs.  McCulloch's  election,  but  she  was  the  pioneer. 


6o       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

tion  district  into  which  such  counties  are  divided  by  the 
county  board. 

Town  officers  do  their  most  important  work  as  agents  of 
the  State  and  county  governments,  especially  in  the  assess- 
ment and  collection  of  taxes. 

"  Non-Township  "  Counties.  There  are  seventeen 
"  non-township "  counties  in  Illinois.  These  seventeen 
counties  have  assessors,  collectors,  highway  commissioners, 
justices  of  the  peace,  and  constables  elected  in  "  road  dis- 
tricts "  and  "  election  precincts  "  into  which  these  coun- 
ties are  divided  by  the  county  board.  They  do  not  have 
supervisors  or  town  clerks  because  the  duties  of  these  of- 
ficers are  performed  by  the  three  county  commissioners 
and  the  county  clerk. 

The  following  comparison  of  the  peace  officers  in  cities 
and  towns  is  of  value: 

DIFFERENCES,    POLICEMAN   AND   CONSTABLE 

Policeman  Constable 

1.  Has  regular  hours,  a  "  beat,"      Has  none  of  these. 

or   place   to   patrol,    and   a 
uniform. 

2.  Can  serve  warrants  only.  Can  serve  all  writs. 

3.  May  arrest  on  sight.  Must  have  a  warrant. 

4.  Has  relation  to  criminal  ac-      Has  relations  to  both  criminal 

tions  only.  and  civil  actions. 

5.  Executes  orders  of  a  mayor.      Executes   orders    of   a   judicial 

officer    as    police    magistrate, 
justice  of  the  peace,  or  judge. 

6.  Jurisdiction  is  the  city.  Jurisdiction  is  the  county. 

7.  Is  appointed  by  chief  of  po-      Is    elected    in    each    township; 

lice  and  the  mayor;  usually  number    depends    on    popula- 

under  civil-service  rules.  tion  and  cannot  in  Illinois  be 

more  than  five. 

8.  Term  is  good  behavior.  Term  is  four  years. 


TOWNS  AND  TOWNSHIPS  IN  ILLINOIS      6i 

V.  Township  Survey  Systems.  The  old  colonial 
system  of  surveying  land  was  very  crude  and  unsatisfactory. 
The  old  boundaries  were  trees,  even  stumps,  a  "  quart  of 
charcoal  buried  under  a  certain  tree,"  and  similar  remov- 
able marks.  Confusion  of  ownership  resulted,  and  many 
lawsuits  over  the  title  to  land.  The  rectangular  system  of 
surveys  now  in  use  throughout  the  West  was  adopted  by 
Congress  (1785)  and  is  called  the  "  simplest  of  all  known 
modes  of  survey."  Thomas  Jefferson  was  chairman  of 
the  committee  in  Congress  that  proposed  this  system  and 
therefore  the  plan  is  often  attributed  to  him;  but  the  real 
originator  was  Thomas  Hutchins,  the  first  surveyor-gen- 
eral of  the  United  States.     (Currey,  Hist.  Chicago,  Vol.  I.) 

1.  Congressional  Townships.  Nearly  all  public  land 
in  the  West  is  divided  into  townships  of  six  miles  square 
"  as  near  as  may  be,"  called  congressional  townships. 
Some  prominent  geographical  feature,  as  the  mouth  of  a 
river,  is  taken  for  a  starting  point  and  through  this  is 
drawn  a  meridian  line  running  north  and  south,  known  as 
the  principal  meridian.  Through  this  line  at  some  selected 
point  and  at  right  angles  to  it  is  run  another  line  called  the 
base  line.  Starting  at  the  intersection  of  these  two  lines 
the  surveyor  measures  off  distances  of  six  miles  on  both, 
and  through  these  points  runs  new  intersecting  lines.  The 
squares  of  land  thus  formed  contain  36  square  miles,  "  or 
thereabouts,"  and  are  the  congressional  tozunships,  bounded 
by  the  lines  running  north  and  south,  east  and  west. 

2.  Sections.  Each  township  is  subdivided  by  a  further 
series  of  similar  lines  into  36  squares,  each  containing  one 

.square  mile  (640  acres),  called  a  section.  Each  section  is 
generally  divided  still  further  into  quarter-sections  of  160 
acres  each;  these  tracts  of  land  are  often  subdivided.     All 


62       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 


these  divisions  are  described  by  the  points  of  the  compass. 
The  sections  in  a  township  are  numbered  east  and  west,  west 
and  east,  alternately.     The  northeast  section  is  always  No. 
I  and  the  southeast  section  is  always  No.  36. 
A  Township  with  Sections  Subdivisions  of  a  Section, 

Numbered. 

Diagram  A. 


6 

5 

4 

3 

2 

1 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

18 

17 

16 

15 

14 

13 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

SO 

29 

28 

27 

26 

25 

81 

32 

33 

34 

35 

36 

Diagram 

B. 

NE>^ 

SW^ 

* 
^ 

^ 

NEV40F 

SEV4 

t 

tt 

sv2°^SEy4 

3.  Problems.     Describe  divisions  marked,    *,  *,  f,  tt, 
and  give  area  of  each. 

Locate  the  following  pieces  of  land: 


1.  Nw]^  nw^   S6.12 

2.  Ei^   s^    S12. 

3.  N^  ne^  S36. 

4.  S>4  nj^  sw>4   S27. 

5.  W^  se^  Sio. 
7.  Se^  sw^  S15. 


8.  Sy2  wwYa  Si. 

9.  S^   sw^   S7. 

10.  S>4  s^  sw^  S31. 

11.  Ne^  ne^  S35. 

12.  Read  and  explain: 

Tp.  41  n  R.  14  e  3rd  P.  M. 


Note, — This  is  the  congressional  or  school  township,  for  the  city 
of  Evanston.  It  has  two  school  districts,  Nos.  75  and  76.  Find  the 
number  of  your  township  and  school  district. 

VI.     Convergence    of    the    Meridians.     Converging 
meridians,  because  of  the  convexity  of  the  earth,  make 
12  S6,  Si 2,  etc.,  refer  to  the  section  number. 


TOWNS  AND  TOWNSHIPS  IN  ILLINOIS     63 

necessary  new  base  lines  and  guide  meridians  every  forty- 
eight  miles  in  the  latitude  of  Illinois  in  order  to  correct 
the  discrepancies  in  the  size  of  the  townships.  Six  of  the 
principal  meridians  of  the  United  States  are  numbered  and 
the  remaining  eighteen  are  named.  The  greater  part  of 
Illinois  is  surveyed  from  the  third  principal  meridian  run- 
ning through  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio  River.  Its  base  line 
crosses  it  at  Centralia  in  Jefferson  County.  Parts  of  Illi- 
nois are  surveyed  from  the  second  and  fourth  meridians. 
Every  civics  pupil  should  understand  the  township  survey 
system  used  by  the  United  States  Government.  An  ex- 
cellent account  of  the  township  survey  system  is  found  in 
Government  of  Illinois,  by  Harry  Pratt  Judson,  pp.  30- 
37.  See  also  Currey,  Hist,  of  Chicago,  Vol.  I,  pp.  226, 
227;  James  and  Sanford,  Government  in  State  and  Na- 
tion, Revised  Edition,  pp.  280-283;  also  Townsend,  Illi- 
nois  and  the  Nation,  ch.  i.  Any  commercial  arithmetic 
will  also  give  space  to  the  topic. 

SUGGESTIVE  QUESTIONS 
(For  pupils  living  in  counties  under  township  organization.) 

1.  When  is  your  township  election? 

2.  What  township  officers  do  you  elect? 

3.  How  do  you  care  for  the  poor  in  your  township? 

4.  How  many  townships  in  your  county? 

5.  Bound  the  one  in  which  you  live. 

6.  (a)  What  was  done  at  your  last  town-meeting?  (b)  How 
many  voters  attended?  (c)  Ought  the  town-meeting  to  be  abol- 
ished? (d)  Who  would  do  its  present  work?  (Ask  the  town 
clerk  to  let  you  see  the  report  of  that  meeting.) 

7.  What  does  it  cost  to  run  your  township? 

8.  For  what  is  the  money  spent? 

9.  Can  women  vote  for  township  officers  in  Illinois?  Can  they 
serve  as  township  officers? 


64       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS' 

10.  For  what  offices  are  women  especially  fitted?     (Give  rea- 
sons for  your  answer.) 

11.  Has  your  township  good  roads?     If  not,  how  can  you  get 
better  ones  ? 

12.  How  do  bad  roads  increase  the  cost  of  living? 

13.  Who  are  the  justices  of  the  peace  in  your  township? 

14.  Who  assesses  the  property  in  your  township? 

15.  Who  collects  the  taxes  in  your  township? 


CHAPTER  IV 

COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

References  ; 

1.  Town  and  County  Government  in  Illinois,  J.  A.  Fairlie,  in  Re- 

port Joint  Legislative  Committee,  47th  General  Assembly,  Vol. 
II,  pp.  76-132.  This  is  by  far  the  most  thorough  report  on 
this  subject.     Get  from  Secretary  of  State,  Springfield. 

2.  Annals   American   Academy,   May    1913,    is    devoted   entirely   to 

county  government  and  is  very  valuable. 

3.  Greene:    Government  of  Illinois,  pp.  95-99. 

Local  government  is  "  neighborhood  government,"  or 
"  home  rule."  The  county,  city,  village,  township,  sani- 
tary, school,  and  park  districts  are  the  local  governments 
in  Illinois  and  perform  the  duties  of  social,  or  community, 
service. 

The  county  is  the  largest  local  government  within  the 
State,  and  touches  the  lives  of  the  greatest  number  of  peo- 
ple. Illinois  has  102  counties,  ranging  in  area  from  less 
than  200  to  over  1,000  square  miles,  and  in  population  from 
1,000  to  over  2,400,000.  The  principal  work  of  the 
county  in  Illinois  is  to 

(i)  Levy  and  collect  taxes. 

(2)  Administer  justice. 

(3)  Have  charge  of  the  local  charity  service. 

(4)  Have  charge  of  elections. 

See  American  Republic,  pp.  163-165.  How  many  of 
the  officers  there  named  does  your  county  have?     (Write 


66       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

your  county  clerk  for  a  copy  of  the  county  budget,  or  ap- 
propriation bill,  to  answer  this  question.) 

County  Boards.  County  boards  in  Illinois  are  of 
three  types :  A  board  of  three  commissioners  elected  at 
large  in  the  seventeen  counties  not  under  township  organi- 
zation ;  a  board  of  supervisors,  elected  one  from  each  town, 
in  the  eighty- four  counties  under  township  organization; 
a  board  of  fifteen  commissioners  in  Cook  County,  ten 
elected  from  Chicago  and  five  from  the  rest  of  the  county. 
The  boards  of  supervisors  are  frequently  too  large  for 
efficient  government,  La  Salle  County,  for  instance,  having 
over  fifty  members. 

"  Non-Township "  Counties.  There  are  seventeen 
non-township  counties  now  in  Illinois.  They  are  generally 
small  in  area  and  are  in  the  southern  part  of  the  State. 
The  list  includes  Alexander,  Calhoun,  Cass,  Edwards, 
Hardin,  Johnson,  Massac,  Menard,  Monroe,  Morgan, 
Perry,  Pope,  Pulaski,  Randolph,  Scot,  Union,  and  Wabash. 
In  1907,  two  counties,  Henderson  and  Williamson,  adopted 
township  government  by  popular  vote.  These  seventeen 
counties  elect  three  county  commissioners  for  a  term  of 
three  years,  one  being  chosen  each  year.  This  board  of 
commissioners  is  the  chief  executive  and  legislative  author- 
ity in  the  county,  holding  five  regular  meetings  each  year 
to  transact  all  county  business.  These  "  non-township  " 
counties  are  divided  into  precincts  for  election  purposes 
and  road  districts  for  highway  purposes. 

County  government  in  Illinois  shares  the  faults  of  such 
government  throughout  the  United  States,  and  is  too  often 
a  "  tax-eater "  without  showing  commensurate  benefits. 
It  is  "  like  a  big  touring-car  with  the  engine  going,  the 
clutch  on,  but  no  driver  in  the  front  seat."     A  "  driver  " 


COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS       67 

is  too  often  found  in  the  county  boss  who  distributes  the 
county  patronage.  Complete  relief  can  only  come  through 
amending  the  State  constitution. 

Three  things  need  to  be  secured  to  make  county  govern- 
ment more  efficient  in  Illinois : 

A.  Unity  of  organization  (fewer  officers). 

B.  Administration  by  experts. 

C.  Simplicity  of  citizenship  through  a  shorter  ballot. 
(Elect  fewer  officers  on  one  ballot.) 

"  You  can  not  get  good  service  from  a  public  servant 
if  you  can  not  see  him,  and  there  is  no  more  effective  way  to 
hide  him  than  by  mixing  him  up  with  a  multitude  of  others 
so  that  they  are  none  of  them  important  enough  to  catch 
the  eye  of  the  average  work-a-day  citizen." — Roosevelt's 
Columbus  Speech,  IQ12. 

Study  the  duties  of  the  executive  and  judicial  officers  of 
the  county  through  those  of  Cook  County.  Are  any  of 
these  officers  omitted  in  your  county?  About  eight  coun- 
ties outside  of  Cook  have  a  separate  probate  judge.  Half 
a  dozen  counties,  notably  Adams  and  Sangamon,  have  a 
special  juvenile  court  and  a  separate  juvenile  detention 
home. 

The  usual  county  officers  are  the  county  board,  sheriff, 
coroner,  county  clerk,  treasurer  (who  also  acts  as  asses- 
sor in  the  non-township  counties),  superintendent  of 
schools.  State's  attorney,  county  surveyor,  county  judge, 
clerk  of  the  circuit  court,  who  also  acts  as  recorder  unless 
a  county  has  more  than  60,000  population,  when  a  recorder 
of  deeds  is  elected.  In  each  county  outside  of  Cook  there 
are  elected  from  nine  to  thirteen  officers. 


68       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

COOK  COUNTY 

Early  History.  Cook  County  was  organized  by  act 
of  the  General  Assembly,  January  15,  1831,  in  the  "  winter 
of  the  deep  snow,"  and  included  the  present  counties  of 
Lake,  Dupage,  Cook,  and  Will. 

The  county  was  named  in  honor  of  Daniel  P.  Cook, 
formerly  Illinois  representative  in  Congress.  The  little 
town  of  Chicago,  not  yet  incorporated,  was  made  the  county 
seat.  In  June  of  the  same  year  the  Legislature  granted 
the  new  county  twenty- four  canal  lots  containing  land  which 
had  been  given  to  Illinois  by  the  United  States  to  encour- 
age the  construction  of  a  canal  to  connect  the  Great  Lakes 
and  the  Mississippi.  Part  of  these  lots  were  sold  to  defray 
the  current  expenses  of  the  new  county,  but  eight  lots  were 
set  aside  for  a  public  square  to  be  always  used  for  govern- 
ment buildings.  This  square  is  now  the  site  of  the  Court 
House  and  City  Hall  and  was  originally  a  gift  to  the  new 
county  from  Illinois.  On  this  block  of  land  was  erected 
the  first  public  structure,  called  the  "  Estray  Pen,"  a  small 
wooden,  roofless  enclosure,  the  first  *'  pound."  See  Gov- 
ernmental History  of  Chicago,  by  Hugo  S.  Grosser. 

In  the  autumn  of  1835  the  first  court  house  was  built 
on  the  Clark  and  Randolph  Street  corner  of  this  public 
square.  It  was  a  small  one-story  brick  building  with  a  base- 
ment in  which  were  the  county  offices,  while  the  court 
room,  seating  two  htmdred  persons,  occupied  the  floor 
above.  That  insignificant  brick  building,  contrasted  with 
the  present  five-million-dollar  court  house  on  the  same  site, 
is  a  symbol  of  the  growth  of  Cook  County  in  eight  decades. 

Area  and  Population.  The  area  of  Cook  County  is 
over  1,000  square  miles.     It  ranks  third  in  Illinois  in  size 


i  i 

^._i ^._L 


COUA/rV  OF  COOK 


c/ryoFCH/c/)60 


5/iOiV/A/(S  TO^//JWP3 


Prcpartd  B<f 

CHICA60  auHSAU  or  PUBLIC  irnottcY 

J9I3 


See  Appendix  D,  p.  225,  note  i,  ch.  III. 


yo       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

(McLean  and  LaSalle  are  larger),  although  first  in  popu- 
lation. The  population  of  the  county,  outside  of  Chicago, 
is  about  200,000.  Chicago  has  now  over  2,400,000  in- 
habitants. 

Townships  in  Cook  County.  There  are  thirty-seven 
townships  in  Cook  County,  eight  of  these  lying  wholly 
within  Chicago  and  their  town  governments  since  1903 
have  been  largely  merged  in  the  city.  There  are  also  sev- 
eral consolidated  townships  like  "  Town  of  the  City  of 
Evanston,"  which  was  formed,  1916,  by  vote  of  the  county 
board  from  parts  of  Niles,  New  Trier,  and  Evanston. 
Consult  ch.  iii  on  Tozvns  and  Tozvnships. 

GOVERNMENT  OF  COOK  COUNTY 

Study  the  Chart  of  the  Government  of  Cook  County, 
p.  87,  in  connection  with  this  chapter. 

County  Board,  (i)  The  county  board  of  Cook  County 
consists  of  fifteen  commissioners,  ten  elected  from  Chicago 
by  the  voters  of  the  city  and  five  from  the  county  outside 
of  Chicago.  The  voters  choose  at  the  same  election  a  presi- 
dent of  the  county  board  who  must  also  be  elected  as  a 
commissioner.  This  officer  must  be  voted  for  twice,  once 
for  commissioner  and  again  for  president  of  the  board 
(Act  of  1893).  The  appointments  of  the  president  of  the 
board  must  be  confirmed  by  the  commissioners  except  three 
civil-service  commissioners,  who  are  named  by  the  president 
alone.  The  board  must  let  all  contracts  for  work  to  be 
done,  after  advertising  for  bids,  to  the  lowest  responsible 
bidders.  As  these  county  contracts  involve  millions  of  dol- 
lars, this  is  a  wise  precaution. 

Term.     The  term  of  office  of  Cook  County  commis- 


COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS        71 

sioners  is  now  four  years  beginning  with  the  first  Monday 
in  December,  19 14,  when  the  new  board  took  office.  (Act 
General  Assembly,  191 3.) 

Duties.  The  principal  work  of  the  board  is  connected 
with  the  annual  budget,  which  must  be  passed  by  March 
I  St  each  year.  The  board  is  divided  into  standing  commit- 
tees named  by  the  president,  and  their  titles  show  their 
duties:  public  service,  finance,  roads  and  bridges,  legisla- 
tion, building,  and  civil  service.  The  deputy  comptroller 
of  the  county  acts  as  clerk  of  the  board  at  all  its  meetings 
and  is  responsible  for  the  minutes  or  records.  The  powers 
of  the  Cook  County  board  are  very  exactly  stated  in  the 
Revised  Statutes,  ch.  xxxiv,  art.  62. 

Executive  Officers.  The  president  of  the  county 
board  presides  at  all  meetings  but  casts  only  his  regular 
vote  as  a  commissioner.  There  is  no  way  to  settle  a  tie 
except  by  reballoting.  He  appoints  the  warden  of  the 
county  hospital;  superintendent  of  the  poor  (house  and 
tuberculosis  hospital  at  Oak  Forest ;  three  civil-service  com- 
missioners ;  ^  the  county  agent,  who  administers  all  outdoor 
rehef  and  any  special  help  needed  by  old  soldiers  and  sailors 
or  their  families;  superintendent  of  the  Juvenile  Detention 
Home,  who  has  always  been  a  woman,  although  the  law 
does  not  require  it;  superintendent  of  public  service,  who 
buys  all  supplies  for  the  county  offices  and  institutions; 
county  attorney,  who  acts  as  legal  adviser  for  the  board 
and  represents  the  county  whenever  suits  are  brought 
against  it ;  county  architect,  who  draws  the  plans  and  over- 
sees the  erection  of  all  buildings  owned  by  the  county. 

1  Cook  County  had  the  first  woman  civil-service  commissioner  in 
Illinois,  Miss  Anna  E.  Nicholes,  appointed  by  President  McCorniick, 
February  i,  1913.   (2) 


72       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

Any  appropriation  of  money  over  five  hundred  dollars 
must  be  passed  by  a  two-thirds  vote,  (lo)  of  the  board. 
The  president  has  the  right  to  veto  any  item  he  chooses  in 
the  annual  appropriation  bill,  and  such  items  can  only  be 
restored  to  the  budget  by  twelve  votes,  or  four-fifths  of  the 
board.  In  the  hands  of  a  vigorous  president  this  power 
is  capable  of  doing  much  good  in  defeating  "  salary  grabs 
and  pay-roll  padding  "  on  the  part  of  a  corrupt  majority 
of  the  board  members. 

The  Cook  County  budget  for  19 13  had  about  nine  hun- 
dred items  vetoed  by  President  A.  A.  McCormick,  the  larg- 
est use  of  the  veto  power  ever  made  by  a  Cook  County  presi- 
dent. 

The  budget  as  finally  adopted  carried  appropriations  for 
more  than  $15,295,000  for  1913.  Any  governing  body 
that  has  the  legal  right  to  spend  over  $15,000,000  ^  of 
public  money  in  one  year — 19 13  —  ought  to  be  well 
known,  carefully  chosen,  and  diligently  watched  by  every 
citizen. 

Sheriff.  The  sheriff  is  the  arm  of  the  judge,  or 
"  court  messenger,"  because  he  carries  out  the  orders  of 
the  judge.  He  sells  property  for  debt;  takes  a  prisoner 
to  jail,  or  hangs  him,  if  the  judge  so  orders.  To  help  keep 
peace  in  the  county,  the  sheriff  appoints  deputies  (in  19 16, 
28,  and  128  bailiffs,  similar  to  special  policemen,  to  serve  in 
the  courts),  but  he  is  responsible  for  their  acts.  He  ap- 
points the  jailer  of  the  county  jail  and  is  responsible  for 
the  care  and  safe-keeping  of  its  prisoners.  By  act  of 
Legislature,  1905,  if  a  person  in  the  custody  of  the  sheriff 
is  lynched,  the  governor  shall  remove  the  sheriff  from 
ofl[ice. 

2  Cook  County  appropriation  bill,  1913,  p.  11,  total  appropriations.  (3) 


COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS       73 

The  contract  for  feeding  the  prisoners  in  the  jail  is  now- 
let  by  the  superintendent  of  public  service  to  the  lowest 
reliable  bidder  and  costs  Cook  County,  this  year,  $30,000. 
Formerly  the  sheriff  was  paid  twenty-five  cents  per  day 
for  feeding  each  prisoner  and  had  all  he  could  make. 
The  office  of  sheriff  was  then  a  fee  office  and  worth  from 
$75,000  to  $100,000  a  year,  one  of  the  "  richest  plums  on 
the  county  political  tree."  Since  1909  a  salary  of  $9,960 
has  been  given  the  sheriff  and  the  fees  are  now  paid  into 
the  county  treasury.  Why  is  this  a  better  arrangement? 
The  sheriff  and  county  treasurer  can  not  be  reelected.  Why  ? 

County  Clerk.  The  county  clerk  holds  three  offices 
because  of  his  election  to  the  office  of  county  clerk.  He  is 
ex-officio  comptroller  and  must  make  all  estimates  of  ex- 
penses for  every  department  of  the  county  government; 
is  clerk  of  the  county  court  and  responsible  for  its  records 
although  he  does  none  of  this  work  personally;  keeps  all 
important  county  papers  and  the  county  seal;  issues  mar- 
riage licenses;  issues  hunting  licenses  for  the  state.  For 
his  work  on  the  taxes,  see  ch.  v,  pp.  97-98.  He  maintains 
three  separate  offices  to  perform  these  varied  duties  as 
county  clerk,  comptroller,  and  clerk  of  the  county  court, 
and  employs  several  hundred  men  and  women,  none  of 
whom  is  under  civil-service  rules.  Only  a  few  of  the  more 
experienced  employees  are  appointed  strictly  because  of 
efficiency. 

County  Treasurer,  zvho  is  ex-ofUcio  county  collector. 
He  pays  out  as  well  as  receives  all  county  funds,  on  the 
warrant  of  the  county  comptroller.  His  bond  hereafter  is 
not  to  be  less  than  $3,000,000,  but  in  justice  to  the  treas- 
urer, the  expense  of  carrying  such  a  heavy  bond  is  to  be 
borne  by  the  county.     Formerly  one  of  the  unsolved  puz- 


74        ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

zles  in  Cook  County  government  was  the  amount  the  treas- 
urer received  for  his  services  as  county  collector  for  delin- 
quent taxes.  The  law  provided  an  utterly  inadequate  salary 
for  the  office  and  allowed  a  certain  percentage  of  the  delin- 
quent tax  collections  for  the  various  towns  in  the  county. 
The  legislature  of  19 15  amended  the  law  by  providing  a 
fixed  salary  of  $9,960  for  the  treasurer  and  hereafter  all 
fees  and  percentages  received  from  this  office  must  be  paid 
to  the  county. 

The  law  also  allowed  the  treasurer  to  pocket  all  the  in- 
terest paid  by  the  various  banks  on  the  county  funds  de- 
posited with  them.  The  exact  amount  was  unknown,  as  the 
treasurer  always  insisted  the  interest  agreement  was  a  pri- 
vate matter  between  the  banks  and  himself.  Here  also  the 
statute  has  been  amended  and  now  all  such  interest  on  pub- 
lic funds  will  belong  to  the  county  in  simple  justice  to  the 
taxpayers. 

Coroner."*  If  a  person  is  found  dead  under  any  sus- 
picious circumstances,  or  there  is  no  physician's  certificate 
stating  cause  of  death,  then  the  coroner,  or  his  deputy, 
must  investigate.  A  jury  of  six  persons  is  summoned  and 
an  inquest  is  held  by  examining  witnesses  to  determine  the 
cause  of  death.  If  evidence  of  crime  is  disclosed,  a  war- 
rant for  the  suspected  person  is  sworn  out  by  the  State's 
attorney.  Arrest,  indictment  by  the  grand  jury,  and  the 
trial  may  follow,  if  such  suspected  person  can  be  found. 
The  coroner  is  the  only  person  who  can  arrest  the  sheriff, 
and  he  acts  as  sheriff  if  the  latter  at  any  time  is  unable  to 
serve. 

^American  Republic,  p.  162. 


COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS       75 

The  two  offices  are  the  oldest  in  the  entire  county,  and 
date  back  to  the  Enghsh  *'  shire  reeve  "  and  "  crowner," 
the  king's  personal  representatives  in  the  shire,  or  county. 

Recorder.  All  deeds  and  mortgages  must  be  re- 
corded at  the  county  seat.  In  Cook  County  a  special  offi- 
cer is  elected  for  this  v^ork,  but  in  most  counties  the  county 
clerk  is  ex-officio  recorder  of  deeds.  The  county  and 
State  must  know  who  owns  every  parcel  of  land  within  its 
borders,  and  whether  there  is  a  mortgage  on  it.  Why  is 
this  necessary  ?  How  does  such  a  record  protect  the  owner 
as  well  as  the  county  and  State  ? 

Superintendent  of* Schools.  For  the  duties  of  this  of- 
ficer, see  chapter  on  Public  Education,  p.  168.  He  is  par- 
ticularly required  to  supervise  and  assist  the  rural  schools. 
Beginning  September  191 3,  the  Cook  County  superintend- 
ent has  appointed  five  rural  directors,  each  one  to  have 
charge  of  the  country  schools  in  his  district  comprising  the 
different  townships  in  the  county.  These  directors  are 
to  oversee  the  teaching  of  agriculture  in  the  country 
schools;  to  encourage  the  wider  use  of  the  schoolhouse  as 
a  social  center,  and  direct  the  forming  of  corn  clubs,  vege- 
table-canning, fruit-  and  chicken-raising  clubs  among  the 
boys  and  girls.  This  movement  to  help  the  country  school 
educate  the  country  boy  and  girl  for  the  farm  life,  not 
away  from  it,  is  one  of  the  hopeful  signs  of  the  growth  of 
practical  education  in  Cook  County  rural  schools. 

Surveyor.  Whenever  necessary,  the  surveyor  deter- 
mines the  right  boundaries  of  property  by  a  survey.  He 
is  paid  by  fees.  Why  elect  such  a  petty  officer  ?  His  name 
only  encumbers  the  ballot. 

State's  Attorney.  The  State's  attorney,  elected  for 
four  years  at  the  general  election  in  November,  is  the  pub- 


y(y       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

lie  prosecutor  and  legal  representative  of  Illinois  in  Cook 
County.  His  office  is  of  great  importance  because  he  must 
prosecute  all  offenders  indicted  by  the  grand  jury  if  they 
are  ever  punished.  If  the  State's  attorney  is  weak  or  dis- 
honest, the  county  will  lack  protection  against  law-break- 
ers. A  faithful  State's  attorney  is  a  terror  to  criminals. 
He  appoints  his  own  assistants, —  at  present  about  forty  — 
and  unfortunately  often  uses  this  power  to  reward  political 
friends,  and  the  administration  of  justice  in  the  county 
often  suffers  from  lack  of  able  legal  service.  Should  the 
State's  attorney  fail  to  do  his  duty,  any  one  of  the  judges 
may  name  a  special  State's  attorney  and  grand  jury  to  in- 
vestigate and  prosecute  any  case.  Such  a  special  attorney 
and  grand  jury  were  named  by  one  of  the  circuit  judges 
(July,  1913)  to  investigate  charges  of  fraud  in  the  general 
election  of  November  5,  1912.  Indictments  resulted.  A 
general  election  is  one  where  any  State  officer  is  elected. 

STATE  COURTS  IN  COOK  COUNTY 

There  is  a  circuit,  superior,  appellate,  criminal,  and 
juvenile  court  in  Cook  County,  all  of  which  are  State 
courts,  but  serving  that  county  alone.  There  are  thirty- 
eight  circuit  and  superior  judges  elected  in  the  county,  any 
one  of  whom  may  hold  court.  The  number  of  judges  de- 
pends on  the  Legislature,  which  also  fixes  their  salaries; 
for  Cook  County,  $10,000  (4),  half  to  be  paid  by  the  State, 
half  by  the  county. 

The  circuit  judges  are  all  elected  the  first  Monday  in 
June,  the  superior  judges  at  different  times.  The  term 
of  both  is  six  years.  The  jurisdiction  of  each  court  in- 
cludes civil  and  criminal  actions,  and  cases  appealed  from 


COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS       yy 

the  justice,  county,  and  municipal  courts.  The  judges 
themselves  select  certain  of  their  number  to  sit  in  the  crim- 
inal court  and  one  judge  to  preside  over  the  juvenile  court, 
where  boys  under  seventeen  and  'girls  under  eighteen  are 
tried  and  the  cases  of  dependent  children  settled. 

Clerks  of  the  Courts.  There  is  an  elected  clerk,  each 
at  a  salary  of  $9,000,  for  the  circuit,  superior,  criminal, 
appellate,  and  probate  courts;  the  term  is  six  years,  and 
they  are  elected  in  November.  In  the  interest  of  econom- 
ical, efficient  government,  these  clerks  ought  to  be  appointed 
by  the  judges  of  the  courts  they  serve  and  the  judges  held 
absolutely  responsible  for  the  work  of  their  appointees. 

The  three  appellate  courts  for  Cook  County  will  be  de- 
scribed under  the  judicial  department  of  Illinois. 

Juvenile  Court.  This  is  one  of  the  State  courts  of 
Cook  County.  The  "  right  hand  "  of  the  judge  is  the  chief 
probation  officer,  chosen  after  a  competitive  examination 
and  paid  $3,000  per  annum.  There  are  now  (1916) 
over  eighty  assistant  probation  officers,  men  and  women, 
selected  in  the  same  manner  as  their  chief.  Their  work  is 
to  watch  over  and  befriend  the  delinquent  and  dependent 
children,  boys  up  to  seventeen,  girls  to  eighteen  years  of 
age,  committed  to  their  charge  as  "  wards  of  the  court." 
(Look  up  the  meaning  of  "  delinquent  "  and  "  dependent.") 

Cook  County  has  the  honor  of  possessing  the  first 
juvenile  court  in  the  world,  established  by  act  of  the  Gen- 
eral Assembly,  1899,  preceding  the  Denver,  Colorado, 
court  (Judge  Ben  Lindsey)  by  six  months.  Circuit  Judge 
Richard  A.  Tuthill  was  the  first  "  kid  "  or  "  kindergarten 
judge,"  as  his  associates  dubbed  him,  and  organized  this 
noted  court. 

The  juvenile  court  in  Cook  County  has  the  additional 


78       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

distinction  of  having  the  first  woman  assistant  to  the  judge 
in  the  State,  Miss  Mary  E.  Bartelme,  who  acts  as  assistant 
to  Judge  Arnold  and  hears  all  cases  of  delinquent  girls. 
Miss  Bartelme  was  appointed  by  Judge  Pinckney  in  March, 
19 1 3.  Her  "  legal  position  "  is  more  like  a  master  in 
chancery  and  the  judge  enters  all  orders  of  the  court. 

The  Juvenile  Detention  Home  is  a  temporary  home  for 
all  children  awaiting  the  action  of  the  court,  and  is  sup- 
ported equally  by  Chicago  and  Cook  County.  A  careful 
physical  examination  is  given  every  child  on  entrance  (5), 
and  medical  and  dental  treatment  when  necessary. 

The  home  is  under  the  charge  of  a  woman  superintend- 
ent, selected  through  competitive  examination,  and  there 
are  five  teachers  furnished  by  the  board  of  education,  two 
each  for  the  delinquent  boys  and  girls  and  a  kindergartner 
f6r  the  dependent  little  children.  In  19 14  a  new  school 
building  was  erected  by  the  Chicago  board  of  education 
exclusively  for  the  children  in  the  Juvenile  Detention  Home. 
The  building  provides  a  gymnasium,  shower  baths,  court 
playground,  manual  training  and  domestic-science  equip- 
ment, library,  and  all  the  facilities  of  a  modern  schoolhouse. 
The  need  of  such  a  school  building  was  great.  (6) 

The  probation  department  of  the  juvenile  court  is  or- 
ganized under  four  divisions:  Field,  Probation,  Child- 
Placing,  and  "  Funds  to  Parents."  The  latter  is  popularly 
called  the  "  Mothers'  Pension  "  division,  and  was  difficult 
to  administer,  because  the  law  was  loosely  drawn.  A  new 
law,  carefully  drawn,  was  later  passed  and  has  proved  work- 
able. The  persons  eligible,  amount  of  pension,  previous  in- 
vestigation required,  are  now  clearly  stated  in  the  new  law. 
The  Pension  Fund  is  administered  through  a  committee  con- 
sisting of  the  chief  probation  officer,  the  head  of  the  Moth- 


COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS        79 

ers'  Pension  department  and  the  County  agent.  This  com- 
mittee with  the  probation  officers  decide  amount  of  pension 
to  be  granted  each  worthy  applicant.  The  county  board  ap- 
propriated $185,000  in  19 16  for  this  Parents'  Pension  Fund. 

During  November,  191 5,  there  were  1,728  children  under 
fourteen  years  of  age  in  the  families  receiving  funds  in 
Cook  County.  The  families  numbered  about  five  hun- 
dred and  forty  and  the  average  amount  given  per  child  was 
$8.52  for  the  month.  A  visiting  housekeeper  advises  these 
mothers  about  the  best  way  to  spend  this  money  for  the 
best  good  of  the  children. 

The  object  of  the  law  is  a  good  one:  to  keep  families 
together  and  enable  widowed  mothers  with  small  children 
to  care  for  them  at  home,  instead  of  being  obliged  to  put 
them  in  a  public  institution.  Great  care  in  administering  the 
law  is  necessary  to  prevent  pauperizing  worthy  families.  (7) 

Four  types  of  children  come  before  the  Juvenile  Court  — 
truants,  defectives,  dependents  and  delinquents.  Truancy 
cases  must  be  handed  over  to  the  school  authorities.  How- 
ever, the  probation  officer  works  with  the  truant  officer  to 
save  the  child  from  a  life  of  vagrancy  or  crime. 

Formerly  the  greatest  difficulty  was  with  the  defective 
type.  Under  the  new  law  of  191 5  to  provide  care  for  the 
feeble-minded,  children  so  afflicted  can  be  sent  to  a  public 
or  private  institution,  or  placed  under  a  guardian  with  pa- 
rental powers.  If  the  judge  so  orders, —  after  a  commis- 
sion of  three,  two  of  whom  must  be  experienced  physicians 
—  or  one  may  be  a  psychologist,  have  passed  on  the  cases, 
— "  the  children  can  be  placed  in  custody  of  the  state  for 
life,  thus  protecting  communities  against  their  depredations 
and  also  giving  the  children  needed  care." 

The  Juvenile  Court  should  be  enrolled  as  a  preventive 


8o       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

agency.  The  probation  officers  are  the  means  of  settling 
a  large  number  of  cases  out  of  court  by  bringing  parents 
or  guardians  and  children  in  friendly  fashion  before  the 
chief  probation  officer  so  that  the  boy  or  girl  can  then  be 
placed  directly  under  the  charge  of  a  probation  officer. 
Thus  a  formal  complaint  to  the  court  is  avoided  and  the 
child  is  saved  from  the  disgrace  of  a  trial.  (8) 

The  county  judge  is  elected  for  four  years  and  holds 
the  county  court.  He  appoints  the  three  jury  commission- 
ers for  Cook  County;  hears  all  cases  of  persons  said  to  be 
insane  and  assigns  them  to  one  of  the  State  hospitals  for 
the  insane.  To  assist  him  in  this  work  he  calls  a  jury  of 
six  persons,  only  one  of  whom  must  be  a  physician.  Judge 
Owens  three  years  ago  summoned  juries  of  prominent 
women  to  hear  the  cases  of  women  and  girls  said  to  be 
insane.  Their  good  work  won  recognition  because  they 
were  the  first  women  jurors  in  Illinois.  Cases  of  non-sup- 
port and  desertion  also  come  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
county  judge.  See  Charity  Service  Cook  County,  p.  85. 
The  county  judge  hears  cases  of  election  frauds  and  is 
responsible  equally  with  the  election  commissioners  for 
carrying  out  the  election  laws.  Civil  suits  involving  sales 
of  property  for  taxes  come  before  the  county  court. 

Probate  Court,  or  "  Orphans'  Court." 

I.  General  Statement.  This  court  is  held  by  the  probate 
judge,  elected  for  four  years  by  the  voters  of  Cook 
County.  Seven  counties  now  have  a  separate  probate 
judge.  The  work  of  the  probate  court  is  to  probate 
(prove)  wills;  appoint  guardians  for  minors  with 
property  and  for  adults,  incapable  through  insanity 
or  drunkenness,  of  managing  their  own  property;  ap- 


COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS       8i 

point  an  administrator  to  carry  out  the  terms  of  a 
will  where  no  executor  is  named  in  the  will. 

II.  Procedure  in  Probating  a  Will. 

a.  Petition  to  judge  for  probate:  will  must  accompany  peti- 

tion. 

b.  Citation   (summons)   to  persons  interested. 

c.  Hearing  the  proofs  by  judge: 

1.  That  testator  is  dead. 

2.  That  testator  was  of  sound  mind  and  not  unduly  influ- 

enced when  making  the  will. 

3.  That  it  was  the  last  will  and  testament. 

d.  Admission  to  probate  and  letters  testamentary  issued  by 

judge  to  executor.     Why? 

e.  Executor  sends  notice  to  creditors. 

f.  Executor  has  inventory  of  estate  made. 

g.  All  claims  against  estate  audited.     Why? 

h.  Division  of  property  according  to  will  and  recording  of  all 
transfers  of  real  estate  in  county  recorder's  office. 
Give  a  reason  for  each  of  these  steps. 
There  are  three  general  divisions  in  probating  a  will: 

1.  Proving  the  will. 

2.  Paying  the  debts. 

3.  Dividing  the  property. 

III.  Procedure  where  Person  Dies  Intestate,  that  is,  where  No 

Will  is  Left. 

a.  Petition  to  judge  for  administrator. 

b.  Proof  of  death  of  person  (doctor's  or  coroner's  certificate). 

c.  Letters  of  administration  issued. 

d.  Remaining  steps  same  as  for  will  except  final  division  of 

estate  is  according  to  law,  which  recognizes  only  heirs. 

IV.  Suggested  Questions  on  Wills. 

I.  What  is  a  will?  Must  it  be  in  the  handwriting  of  the 
testator  ?  How  can  a  person  who  can  not  read  or  write 
make  a  will? 


82       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

2.  Why  must  there  be  witnesses?     How  many?     Must  they 

know  the  contents  of  the  will?     Can  they  be  remem- 
bered in  the  will  ? 

3.  If  a  witness  dies  before  the  testator,  how  may  the  will 

be  proved? 

4.  What  is  a  codicil? 

5.  What  is  the  difference  between  an  heir  and  a  legatee? 

6.  Why  is  it  better  to  make  a  will? 

7.  What  hinders  a  guardian  from  abusing  his  trust? 

8.  How  can  an  animal  be  a  legatee?    An  institution? 

Jury  Commissioners.  There  are  three  jury  commis- 
sioners, appointed  by  the  judges  of  all  the  courts  in  Cook 
County;  salary  not  over  $1,500.  Old  soldiers  must  have 
preference  in  appointments.  The  jury  commissioners  must 
keep  on  file  a  Hst  of  men  eligible  for  grand  and  petit  jury 
duty  in  the  county  and  State  courts.  At  least  15,000  cards 
containing  the  name,  age,  occupation,  nationality,  of  men 
eligible  for  the  juries  are  in  a  large  swinging  box,  hung  in 
a  frame,  in  the  jury  commissioners'  rooms.  The  names 
for  the  cards  are  secured  from  the  poll  lists  kept  by  the 
election  commissioners.  Sixty  thousand  names,  eligible 
for  petit  jury  duty,  are  kept  on  file  all  the  time  and  a  sepa- 
rate list  of  three  thousand  men  owning  real  estate,  eligible 
for  the  grand  jury. 

Hozv  Juries  are  Drawn.  The  clerk  of  any  court  re- 
quiring a  jury  goes  to  the  commissioners,  and  after  the 
violent  shaking  up  of  the  box  containing  these  cards,  he 
draws  out  as  many  as  his  "panel"  (number  of  jurors 
needed)  calls  for.  Then  venires  (summons  to  appear  as 
jurors)  are  served  on  these  men. 

The  jury  commissioners  have  succeeded  in  securing  bet- 
ter men  for  jury  service  in  Cook  County  and  in  saving  time 
for  the  judges. 


COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS       83 

CHARITY  SERVICE  OF  COOK  COUNTY 

The  charitable  institutions  of  Cook  County  are  the  larg- 
est in  the  United  States,  those  in  New  York  being  under  the 
city.  More  than  one-half  of  every  dollar  of  taxes  appro- 
priated by  the  county  board  each  year  goes  to  support 
the  charity  service  of  the  county.  This  fact  alone  ought 
to  kindle  the  interest  of  every  citizen  in  his  or  her  county 
government.     The  list  of  charitable  institutions  follows: 

a.  Infirmary  or  poor  house  at  Oak  Forest.  This  insti- 
tution shelters  3,000  old  and  infirm  persons.  It  is  located 
southwest  of  Chicago  on  the  county  farm  of  355  acres  in 
Bremen  Township.  A  very  successful  farm  is  run  in  con- 
nection with  this  institution.  The  labor  is  provided  mainly 
by  the  inmates  and  the  farm  furnishes  large  quantities  of 
fresh  vegetables  in  season  for  the  Infirmary  and  Tuberculo- 
sis hospital.  A  flourishing  poultry  yard,  an  orchard,  vine- 
yard, greenhouses  and  cannery  prove  Oak  Forest  is  moving 
toward  partial  self-support. 

b.  County  hospital.  The  new  hospital  building,  when 
completed,  will  have  2,700  beds  and  will  be  the  second  larg- 
est hospital  in  the  world.  Physicians  and  surgeons  come 
from  all  over  United  States,  Canada  and  even  South  Amer- 
ica to  visit  or  study  in  this  hospital.  Medical  students  in 
Chicago  are  ambitious  to  be  admitted  as  internes  because  of 
the  great  opportunities  for  study  and  practice. 

r.  Psychopathic  or  Detention  hospital,  on  the  west  side, 
\?  for  the  temporary  care  of  men,  women,  and  children 
thought  to  be  insane  and  waiting  until  the  county  judge 
and  a  jury  pass  on  their  mental  condition.  A  new  modern 
hospital  properly  equipped  to  care  for  these  pitiable  cases 
was  built  in  19 14  at  a  cost  helow  the  bond  issue  —  a  very 


84        ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

unusual  fact  where  buildings  are  paid  for  from  tax-money. 
This  hospital  has  recently  established  a  department  of 
psychiatry  (9)  for  the  study  and  treatment  of  mental  dis- 
eases. Here  can  be  sent  cases  of  nervous  disorders  border- 
ing on  insanity  where  wise,  kindly  treatment  may  restore 
the  patient  to  normal  life  without  the  stigma  resulting  from 
commitment  to  an  insane  asylum. 

d.  County  agent  administers  the  outdoor  poor  relief  and 
gives  temporary  relief  to  the  poor  in  their  homes.  With 
the  advice  and  assistance  of  the  G.  A.  R.  posts,  he  distrib- 
utes county  aid  to  needy  soldiers  and  sailors  and  their  fami- 
lies. The  county  is  spending  (in  19 16)  over  $574,000  in 
outdoor  relief  through  the  county  agent's  office.  (10)  An 
earnest  effort  is  being  made  to  prevent  misuse  of  this  large 
sum  by  compelling  certain  unworthy  "  political  poor  "  to  go 
to  work.  It  is  estimated  a  hundred  thousand  dollars  will 
be  saved  and  not  a  single  worthy  family  be  turned  away. 

e.  Juvenile  Detention  Home  for  Delinquent  and  De- 
pendent Children  is  described  under  the  sections  on  the 
Juvenile  Court  of  which  the  Home  is  a  necessary  part. 
Sangamon  and  Adams  Counties  also  have  such  homes  con- 
nected with  their  juvenile  courts. 

f.  Adult-Probation  Officers.^  These  adult-probation  of- 
ficers are  to  have  oversight  of  "  first  offenders "  and 
young  prisoners  who  are  too  old  for  the  juvenile  court  yet 
show  desire  to  reform.  These  prisoners  may  be  paroled 
to  an  adult  probation  officer  for  six  months  or  a  year  and, 
if  proved  deserving,  may  be  dismissed  by  the  circuit  judge 
at  the  end  of  their  parole  without  further  punishment. 
Part  of  the  earnings  of  such  paroled  persons  must  go  to 
people  dependent  on  them  for  support,  and  part  to  make 

*  Act  in  effect,  July  i,  191 1. 


COUNTY  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS       85 

good  any  losses  their  crime  caused.  This  proves  their 
determination  to  do  right  and  their  fitness  for  complete 
freedom.  The  law  is  very  carefully  drawn  and  ought  to 
accomplish  much  good  if  wisely  administered.  It  is  under 
the  supervision  of  the  circuit  and  municipal  court  judges. 

g.  Cook  County  maintains  two  large  hospitals  to  care  for 
cases  of  tuberculosis,  one  connected  with  the  County  hos- 
pital for  cases  that  are  counted  incurable,  or  where  the 
patient  is  too  near  death  to  endure  the  long  trip  to  the 
County  farm,  and  the  larger  hospital  with  800  beds  at  Oak 
Forest.  This  hospital  is  on  the  cottage  plan  and  in  191 5 
admitted  over  1,500  patients.  Within  two  years  the  hos- 
pital population  has  doubled,  which  proves  the  growth  of 
public  confidence  in  the  institution  and  in  its  power  to  cure. 
The  long  campaign  against  the  "  white  plague  "  is  bearing 
fruit.  Each  year  more  people  in  the  incipient  stages  of  tu- 
berculosis seek  the  help  offered  by  the  Oak  Forest  Hospital. 

h.  Bureau  of  Social  Service  of  Cook  County  was  created 
by  the  County  board  March  i,  19 16.  It  combines  all  the 
public  welfare  and  social  service  work  of  the  county  under 
one  director,  at  present  a  woman  and  a  trained  social  worker, 
who  is  under  civil  service  protection  as  are  all  the  twenty 
employees  of  the  bureau.  The  organized  divisions  are  ( i ) 
Non-Support,  dealing  with  cases  of  deserted  mothers  and 
children,  or  where  because  of  physical  disability  crippled 
children  and  aged  parents  are  unjustly  thrown  on  public 
charity.  This  division  collects  from  relatives  financially 
able  to  contribute  toward  the  support  of  such  cases,  about 
$1,000  each  week  of  the  year  and  thus  saves  the  taxpayers 
about  three  times  the  appropriation  for  all  the  work  of  the 
Bureau  of  Social  Service.  (2)  County  Jail  division.  This 
deals  with  cases  of  boys  between  17-21,  too  old  for  the 


86       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

juvenile  court  and  held  to  the  grand  jury,  often  for  a  first 
offense.  Their  cases  are  investigated  and  as  a  result,  the 
boy  is  often  paroled  to  an  adult  probation  officer  and  sent 
back  to  work,  thus  being  saved  the  degradation  of  weeks  in 
jail  in  contact  with  vicious  men.  (3)  Psychopathic  division 
to  investigate  home  conditions  and  family  histbry  of  the 
cases  committed  to  the  Psychopathic  hospital.  Such  inves- 
tigation is  very  necessary  before  a  case  can  be  successfully 
treated  by  the  hospital  staff.  (4)  Oak  Forest  division  to 
look  into  the  cases  of  children  sent  to  the  Infirmary  and 
Tuberculosis  hospital.  In  the  past,  large  numbers  of  crip- 
pled and  feeble-minded  children  were  sent  to  the  Infirmary 
which  is  not  supposed  to  keep  them.  The  state  has  now 
made  more  suitable  provision  for  their  care  and  it  is  the 
duty  of  this  division  of  the  County  Bureau  of  Social  Service 
to  see  that  the  state  law  is  carried  out  and  that  such  children 
are  committed  to  proper  institutions.  (5)  Tuberculosis 
Survey  of  Tozvnships  in  Cook  County  outside  Chicago. 
Within  that  city,  the  Municipal  Tuberculosis  Sanitarium 
and  the  health  department  are  responsible  for  such  survey. 
The  county  survey  is  part  of  Cook  County's  preventive  cam- 
paign against  this  wide-spread  disease.  (6)  Investigation 
of  releases  from  the  Lincoln  State  School.  The  title  of 
this  division  explains  its  work.  Before  a  feeble-minded 
child  or  adult  is  released  from  state  custody,  careful  investi- 
gation is  needed  to  determine  whether  the  person  set  at 
large  is  capable  of  self -direction  and  will  not  be  a  menace 
to  any  community  receiving  such  person.  (7)  Marriage 
and  divorce  statistics  from  which  officials  can  obtain  valu- 
able information  on  which  to  base  future  legislation. 


THE  VOTERS  OF 

COOK   COUNTY 


Elective  Officials  I I  Ins+i+u-tions  or  Appointive  Officials 

President  Included  b.  Elected  bij  their  respective  Townships 

Prepared  by  Chicago  BureaQ  of  Public  Efficiency,  1913 

Chart  of  organization   of   the  government  of   Cook   County,   Illinois, 
showing  lines  of  authority  and-  salary  rates  for  elective  officials. 


I  M  I  I  ;   i  !  CHAPTER  V 

]   \      .    ' 

'       THEl  PUBLIC  POCKETBOOK:    HOW  IT  IS  FILLED  i 

:  M  :  M  ■ 

References  i    ' 

1.  Revenue  Law,   Revised   Statutes,  ch.   120;   consult  index  at  be- 

ginning chapter. 

2.  Report  Special  Tax  Commission:     J.  A.  Fairlie,  1910. 
J    3.  Greene :     Government  of  Illinois,  ch.  ix. 

\    4.  Garner :     Government  in  United  States;   Supplement,  pp.  28-32. 
5.  A.    Tax-Payer's     Calendar:     County     Clerk    of     Cook    County, 

Chicago. 

1         ' 

General  Statement.  The  main  source  of  Illinois'  rev- 
enue is  the  general  property  tax,  levied  on  real  and  per- 
sonal property.  The  most  striking  feature  of  this  tax  is 
the  legal  recognition  in  the  revenue  act  of  the  State  of  the 
undervaluation  of  real  and  personal  property  for  assess- 
ment. Since  1909  the  "  taxable  value "  has  been  one- 
third  of  the  "  fair  cash  value." 

Corporations.  Corporations  in  Illinois  are  subject  to 
taxation  in  the  same  manner  as  individuals;  but  railroad 
and  telegraph  property  is  assessed  by  the  State  Board  of 
Equalization.  Each  county,  however,  is  allowed  an  assess- 
ment for  the  miles  of  track  lying  within  it.  The  same  is 
true  for  the  telegraph  companies  on  their  mileage  of  poles 
and  wires  in  each  county. 

1  Much  of  this  material  is  given  through  the  courtesy  of  Mr.  Charles 
Krutckoflf,  head  clerk  under  the  Cook  County  board  of  assessors. 


THE  PUBLIC  POCKETBOOK  89 

Sources  of  Illinois'  Revenue.  The  income  of  the 
State  of  Illinois  is  derived  from: 

A.  General  tax  on  property  of  individuals  and  corporations. 

B.  Seven  per  cent,  on  gross  income  of  the  Illinois  Central  Rail- 

road. By  the  act  of  1851,  on  all  its  charter  lines  in  the 
State,  the  Illinois  Central  is  to  pay  annually  to  the  State, 
7  per  cent,  on  the  gross  receipts  of  the  corporation.  This 
payment  is  in  lieu  of  any  other  tax  on  valuable  lands  given 
the  railroads  by  the  State,  and  is  supposed  to  be  a  perpet- 
ual agreement.  Illinois  receives  over  $1,200,000  annually 
from  this  source. 

C.  Tax  on  gross  premiums  of  all  life  insurance  companies. 

D.  Inheritance  tax  on  all  property  probated  in  the  State.     This 

is  easy  to  collect  because  the  value  of  the  property  is  a 
matter  of  record  in  the  probate  court.  The  tax  is  a  grad- 
uated one;  widows  and  children  pay  less  than  more  distant 
relatives. 

E.  Certain   fees   and   miscellaneous   items,   as   fines.     Towns   and 

road  districts  may  levy  a  cash  poll  tax  of  from  one  to  two 
dollars  for  road  purposes  only.  Illinois  has  never  had  any 
general  poll  tax  as  many  other  States  have.  (Session 
Laws,  1913.) 

Property  Exempt  from  Taxation.  The  State  of  Illi- 
nois is  liberal  in  kinds  of  property  exempt  from  general 
taxation.  Such  property,  however,  must  pay  its  share  of 
any  special  assessments  levied.  The  classes  of  property 
exempt  are: 

A.  All  public  school  lands  and  buildings. 

B.  Other  educational  institutions  of  all  kinds;  e.  g.,  the  Art  Insti- 

tute in  Chicago,  Northwestern  University  at  Evanston. 

C.  Churches;  parsonages  if  owned  by  the  church. 

D.  All  government  property. 

E.  PubHc  libraries:  e.  g.,  Newberry  and  John  Crerar  in  Chicago, 

as  well  as  the  city-owned  public  library. 

F.  Cemeteries. 


90       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 
Terms  Defined.     (To  be  carefully  learned.) 

A.  Real  property :  lands  and  buildings. 

B.  Personal   property :    movable   and    "  intangible "    prop- 

erty; e.  g.,  cattle,  threshing  machines,  furniture,  auto- 
mobiles, sewing  machines,  watches,  stocks,  and  bonds, 
etc. 

C.  Personal  property  schedule :  a  list  of  the  kinds  of  per- 

sonal property  for  purposes  of  taxation. 

D.  Assessment  of  property :  putting  a  value  on  property 

for  purposes  of  taxation.  Assessed  value  is  one-third 
the  market  value. 

E.  "  Levying  a  tax  " :  saying  how  much  money  must  be 

raised  in  a  certain  locality  to  run  the  government. 

F.  "  Computing  the  rate  "  :  finding  how  much  must  be  paid 

on  every  hundred  dollars  of  assessed  value  of  the  prop- 
erty. 

G.  "  Extending  the  taxes  " :  multiplying  the  assessed  value 

of  the  property  by  the  rate  of  taxation  and  entering 
same  in  tax-collector's  book. 
H.  Special  assessments  are  taxes  levied  for  some  special 
purpose,  as  paving  a  street,  laying  a  sewer  or  water 
main,  and  are  only  paid  by  the  property  benefited  by 
the  improvement.  These  taxes  frequently  form  the 
heaviest  ones  against  city  real  estate.  They  are  usually 
paid  to  a  special  officer  called  city  collector^  and  are 
never  included  in  the  general  property  taxes. 

Assessment  of  Property  in  Cook  County.     (General 
features  are  the  same  for  all  other  counties  in  Illinois.) 

A.  Personal  Property. 

I.  Cook   County  has  an  elected  board  of  five  assessors  — 
term  six  years  —  to  have  entire  charge  of  the  assess- 


THE  PUBLIC  POCKETBOOK  91 

ment  of  real  and  personal  property  in  the  county.  In 
counties  under  township  organization,  outside  of 
Cook,  the  elected  town  assessors  make  the  original  as- 
sessment subject  to  review  by  the  county  treasurer. 
In  the  seventeen  non-township  counties,  the  county 
treasurer  is  ex-officio  assessor  and  may  appoint  deputy 
assessors. 

2.  The  personal  property  schedules  may  be  sent  by  mail, 

or  delivered  by  a  deputy  assessor.  In  Chicago  they  are 
always  delivered  by  the  deputy  assessors.  These  depu- 
ties are  appointed  by  the  board,  or  elected  by  the  legal 
voters  of  the  township:  they  are  appointed  in  Chicago 
and  in  Ridgeville  Township  (Evanston),  but  elected  in 
the  remaining  twenty-nine  townships  in  the  county. 

3.  Owner   of   property   must   fill    out   schedule   by   putting 

down  fair  cash  value  of  his  personal  property.  Sched- 
ules must  be  returned  to  the  assessor  by  mail  or  in 
person.  In  either  case  they  must  be  sworn  to  before 
a  notary.  After  delivery  of  schedules  from  five  to 
fifteen  days  are  allowed  before  adding  the  legal  fifty 
per  cent,  to  the  deputy  assessor's  estimate  of  the  value 
of  the  property.  This  is  only  done  where  the  owner 
neglects,  or  refuses,  to  fill  out  his  personal  property 
schedule. 

Personal  property  schedules  returned  are  accepted 
by  the  board  of  assessors.  In  the  busy  months  of 
March  and  April  there  are  from  250  to  300  men  under 
the  head  clerk  of  the  board  of  assessors,  in  the  work- 
room and  outside.  Need  of  a  thoroughly  trained,  ef- 
ficient force  of  men  for  all  this  work  is  very  apparent. 

From  the  field  book  a  careful  copy  is  made  of  all 
values  on  to  cards  called  "  slips." 

4.  All  the  items  and  values  given  on  the  personal  property 

schedules  are  absolutely  copied  on  to  the  Personal  Prop- 
erty Tax  Warrant.  The  thirty-eight  separate  columns 
on  this  Personal  Property  Tax  Warrant  are  added  to 
find  total  value  of  all  the  personal  property  in  the 
county. 


92       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

5.  After  this  tax  warrant  is  completed,  the  board  of  asses- 
sors sign  sworn  affidavit  as  to  its  authenticity  and  this 
statement  is  attached  to  the  warrant.  An  alphabetical 
list  of  every  personal  property  tax-payer  in  a  district, 
with  full  cash  value  of  his  movable,  or  personal,  prop- 
erty, affixed,  is  mailed  by  the  board  of  assessors  to 
each  tax-payer  in  the  county.  Every  one  can  thus  know 
how  much  he  is  assessed  on  his  personal  property  and 
compare  it  with  his  neighbor's  assessment.  These 
lists  form  the  basis  of  the  complaints  made  to  the  board 
of  review.  Get  such  a  personal  property  list  for  your 
township  if  you  live  in  Cook  County. 

B.  Assessment  of  Real  Estate  in  Cook  County. 

I.  The  assessment  of  real  property  is  made  in  a  different 
way,  to  the  bewilderment  of  the  tax-payer.  In  coun- 
ties outside  of  Cook,  the  assessments  are  all  reviewed 
by  the  county  treasurer.  In  all  counties  except  Cook, 
the  real-estate  books  are  only  made  in  duplicate.  In 
Cook  County  the  county  clerk  makes  the  real-estate 
books  in  triplicate  every  four  years.  The  books  are 
called  A,  B,  and  C.  Book  A  is  for  the  county  clerk. 
Book  B  is  for  the  assessors.  Book  C  is  for  the  board 
of  review.  The  county  clerk,  puts  the  legal  description 
of  each  parcel  of  taxable  property  in  each  of  the  three 
books.  Real-estate  books  are  filled  out  by  assessors 
only  once  in  four  years  (i),  and  sent  to  the  county 
clerk.  Each  year  the  assessors  simply  add  the  im- 
provements made  and  new  buildings  erected  during 
that  year  and  note  all  fire  losses.  There  are  about 
13,000  new  buildings  erected  annually  in  Chicago. 

Assessors  also  keep  careful  track  of  all  estates  pro- 
bated and  note  who  receives  all  such  property  when 
divided.  They  ought  to  work  in  conjunction  with  the 
probate  court  and  the  recorder's  office,  if  all  county 
departments  worked  for  the  best,  most  efficient  service 
to  the  tax-payers  of  the  county. 


THE  PUBLIC  POCKETBOOK  93 

2.  When  the  assessors  have  filled  out  the  actual  and  as- 
sessed value  of  every  parcel  of  taxable  real  estate  in 
the  county  for  the  first  year  of  the  quadrennial  period 
and  entered  same  in  the  three  books,  they  are  sent  to 
the  board  of  review  for  their  corrections,  if  any  are  to 
be  made. 

Book  A  alone  is  sent  by  the  board  of  review  to  the 
county  clerk.  Book  B  then  stays  four  years  with  the 
board  of  assessors,  and  Book  C  stays  four  years  with 
the  board  of  review. 

Work  of  the  Board  of  Review.  This  board  of  three 
men,  elected  for  six  years,  hears  all  complaints  of  individual 
tax-payers.  Their  salaries  are  large  —  $7,000  —  and  they 
only  give  about  two  months  of  their  time  each  year 
to  the  work.  The  reason  for  the  large  salary  is  not  ap- 
parent. Between  July  7  and  August  i  these  complaints, 
on  prescribed  blanks,  must  be  filed  in  person  at  the  rooms 
of  the  board.  August  is  given  to  hearing  these  com- 
plaints. 

The  assessors'  warrants  are  sent  to  the  county  clerk 
from  the  board  of  review  as  fast  as  they  are  completed  and 
all  are  finished  about  September  15. 

Work  of  the  State  Board  of  Equalization.  The  State 
board  of  equalization  equalizes  assessments  of  real  and 
personal  property  between  counties  in  the  State  and  also 
assesses  railroads  and  certain  corporations,  and  the  State 
auditor  reports  these  values  to  the  various  county  clerks. 
Each  of  the  102  county  clerks  in  the  State  sends  the  lists 
of  real  and  personal  property  for  the  county  to  the  State 
auditor,  who  is  a  member  of  the  board.  The  board  now 
numbers  twenty-six:  one  member  elected  from  each  con- 
gressional district,  and  the  State  auditor  is  a  member  ex- 
officio.     The  members  are  chosen  in  November  for  a  term 


94       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

off  four  years  each.  The  annual  meetings  are  held  in 
August. 

Their  work  is  also  to  assess  railroad  tracks,  or  "  right  of 
way,"  and  their  rolling  stock  —  cars  and  locomotives  —  and 
to  assess  capital  stock  of  Illinois  corporations.  The  local 
assessor  looks  after  the  property  of  foreign  corporations 
doing  business  in  the  State. 

The  work  of  the  board  is  done  through  committees  and 
largely  through  "  star  chamber "  methods.  Its  rules  of 
procedure  are  over  forty  years  old  and  its  work  is  clumsy 
and  inefficient.  "  It  should  be  abolished  and  a  small  tax 
commission  appointed  by  the  governor  substituted."  ^ 

Work  of  County  Clerk  (on  Personal  Property).  The 
county  clerk  is  obliged  to  copy  all  names,  addresses,  and 
assessed  values  (since  1909  one-third  of  the  real  value)  of 
all  personal  property  in  Cook  County  from  the  assessor's 
personal  property  tax  warrants  sent  him  from  the  board  of 
review.     This  is  called  the  "  collector's  warrant." 

Computing  the  Rate.  The  county  clerk  computes  the 
rate  of  taxation  by  dividing  the  amount  of  tax  to  be  raised 
in  any  township  or  taxation  district  by  the  assessed  value 
of  all  the  taxable  property  in  that  district  including  per- 
sonal property,  real  estate,  certain  railroad  property,  and 
capital  stock  of  corporations.  Each  taxing  body  (except 
the  State  of  Illinois)  certifies  its  tax  levy,  or  amount 
needed  from  the  taxes,  to  the  county  clerk  for  this  very 
purpose.  There  are  about  four  hundred  different  taxing 
bodies  —  townships,  school  districts,  cities,  villages  —  in 
Cook  County.  The  rate  of  taxation  has  to  be  found  sepa- 
rately for  each  of  these  bodies,  because  there  is  some  taxing 

2  Report,  Special  Tax  Commission,  John  A.  Fairlie,  Secretary,  No- 
vember 1910. 


THE  PUBLIC  POCKETBOOK  95 

body,  for  instance,  a  small  park  district  in  one  city  or  vil- 
lage, that  is  not  included  in  any  other,  thus  making  a  dif- 
ferent rate  for  that  district.  The  assessed  value  of  each 
piece  of  taxable  real  estate  in  the  county  is  multiplied  by 
the  rate  and  the  amount  entered  in  the  assessor's  books 
opposite  the  description  of  the  property.  The  amount  of 
a  tax-payer's  personal  property  tax  is  found  in  the  same 
way,  using  the  sam.e  rate,  and  is  also  entered  in  the  asses- 
sor's books.  The  sum  of  these  two  amounts  makes  the 
total  of  a  property-owner's  taxes,  except  special  assess- 
ments,—  a  large  exception  if  you  live  in  a  city. 

To  still  further  complicate  the  process,  the  rate  for  State, 
county,  township,  sanitary,  school,  and  park  districts  must 
be  computed  separately,  by  a  similar  process.  It  is  easy  to 
understand  in  Cook  County,  where  the  difficulties  are  the 
greatest,  why  the  county  clerk's  office  employs  three  hun- 
dred men  during  November,  December,  and  January,  the 
busiest  season,  for  all  the  complicated  work  of  "  extending 
the  taxes "  and  entering  them  in  the  assessor's  books. 
When  the  work  is  finished  the  county  clerk  sends  the  books 
to  the  collectors,  and  the  work  of  the  tax-payer  begins. 

Collection  of  Taxes.  This  is  easy  compared  with  the 
assessment  of  property  and  extension  of  the  taxes  just  de- 
scribed. Taxes  are  due  on  and  after  January  2  annually. 
In  all  counties  under  township  organization,  including  Cook, 
taxes  are  payable  to  the  tozvn  collector  until  about  March 
IK-  Within  Chicago,  taxes  are  payable  to  the  county  col- 
lector, who  is  also  the  county  treasurer.  In  the  seventeen 
southern  counties  not  under  township  organization  the 
sheriff  is  tax  collector. 

Delinquent  Taxes.  Taxes  are  delinquent  April  i 
and  must  all  be  paid  to  the  county  collector.     Interest  at 


96       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

I  per  cent,  a  month  is  added  after  May  i  as  a  penalty  for 
tardy  payment.  Two  per  cent,  of  the  delinquent  taxes 
collected  may  be  retained  by  the  county  collector  as  his 
lawful  fee.  This  ought  to  be  remedied  by  a  law  giving  the 
county  collector  a  fair  salary  and  having  all  such  fees  paid 
into  the  county  treasury.   (2) 

If  the  taxes  are  unpaid  August  i,  the  county  collector 
and  the  county  clerk,  or  their  deputy,  must  sell  the  real 
estate  at  public  auction  for  the  taxes. 

Redemption  of  Property.  The  owner  has  two  years 
in  which  to  redeem  his  property  at  the  office  of  the  county 
clerk  by  paying  arrears  of  taxes  and  all  other  fees  incident 
to  the  sale.  After  the  two  years  are  up,  the  owner  can 
only  recover  his  property  by  making  a  bargain  with  the 
purchaser,  who  meanwhile  holds  a  tax  deed  for  the  prop- 
erty. 

Restrictions  on  the  Taxing  Power.  The  Legislature 
can  not  contract  any  debt  for  the  State  beyond  $250,000, 
unless  the  people,  by  a  referendum  vote,  approve  such  bond 
issue.  All  local  taxing  bodies  in  the  State  are  limited  by 
the  constitution,  or  the  laws,  in  respect  to  the  amount  of 
taxes  they  may  levy.  Except  by  vote  of  the  people,  county 
boards  can  not  levy  a  tax  of  more  than  75  cents  on  each 
$100  of  the  assessed  value.  City  governments  are  limited 
to  2  per  cent,  of  the  assessed  value  of  property  within  their 
boundaries;  school-boards  are  limited  to  5  per  cent,  on  the 
assessed  value  of  property  in  the  district  (school  buildings 
excluded),  and  park  and  sanitary  districts  are  equally 
limited.  These  percentages  are  for  annual  expenditures; 
the  debt  limit,  or  right  to  issue  bonds  for  public  improve- 
ments, etc.,  is  in  addition  to  these  percentages.  This  works 
special  hardship  on  a  large  city  like  Chicago,  and  prevents 


THE  PUBLIC  POCKETBOOK  97 

many  greatly  needed  public  improvements  being  started. 
The  General  Assembly  of  19 13  passed  an  amendment  to 
the  Juul  Law  which  will  give  some  relief  by  allowing  cities 
to  levy  larger  taxes  and  thus  gain  an  increased  income  by 
1914. 

Conclusion.  This  cumbersome  and  complicated  sys- 
tem of  assessing  property,  the  taxing  of  personal  property, 
and  the  undervaluation  of  all  property,  leads  to  dishonesty 
on  the  part  of  the  owners,  who  never  think  of  reporting 
all  their  personal  property  at  its  full  cash  value.  Conse- 
quently, taxes  in  Illinois  fall  heaviest  on  conscientious 
people,  while  rich  property  owners  generally  escape  their 
just  share  of  taxation. 

Illinois  greatly  needs  a  thorough  revision  and  simplify- 
ing of  her  revenue  act  and  an  amendment  to  the  constitu- 
tion to  make  such  revision  effective.  But  to  amend  our 
constitution  seems  almost  an  impossibility.^ 

The  local  assessors  and  the  county  employees  for  the  as- 
sessment and  collection  of  taxes  deserve  much  credit  for 
better  work  than  could  be  expected  under  the  handicaps  of 
such  a  confused  and  complicated  law.  The  Legislature  of 
19 1 5  refused  to  provide  a  small  tax  commission  to  super- 
vise and  simplify  our  system  of  taxation.  (3)  The  Legisla- 
ture also  later  refused  to  abolish  the  board  of  equalization. 

ILLUSTRATIVE  MATERIAL 

Get  copies  of  Personal  Property  Tax  Warrant,  Personal  Prop- 
erty Schedule,  list  of  personal  property  tax-payers  in  your  town- 
ship with  the  amount  of  their  personal  property;  a  copy  of  the 
county  collector's  warrant  —  blank  sheet, —  tax  receipts,  etc. 

Get  the  assessor  to  fill  out  a  sample  real-estate  assessment  on  a 
well-known  piece  of  property  in  your  township,  or  school  district, 

*  Amendment  of  the  Illinois  Constitution,  pp.  19&-200. 


98       ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

and  notice  what  is  entered  on  the  assessor's  book.  If  possible, 
visit  the  office  of  the  county  collector  and  see  the  tax  books  for 
your  school  district. 

Get  a  copy  of  the  newspaper  in  your  county  with  the  advertise- 
ments of  real  estate  to  be  sold  for  delinquent  taxes. 

Assessment  of  Personal  Property,  Town  of  Ridgeville  (4),  for  1915. 

Board  of  Assessors  Board  of  Review 

$3,213,438  $3,066,627 

The  assessed  or  one-third  value  of  Real  Estate,  bounded  by 
Rush  Street  bridge  to  Twelfth  Street  and  from  Lake  Street  to  the 
river,  for  1915 :  (5) 

Board  of  Assessors  Board  of  Review 

$213,215,572  $194,455,379 

The  assessed  or  one-third  value  of  Real  Estate  in  the  City  of 
Evanston  for  1915: 

Board  of  Assessors  Board  of  Review 

$10,525,606  $10,233,200 

The  tax  rate  in  school  district  No.  75  is  divided  as  follows: 

State $  .55 

County     59 

Sanitary     42 

City  of  Evanston 1.85 

High  School  1.25 

Public  Schools  2.27 


$6.93 


The  above  rates  are  the  total  rates  of  all  tax  levies,  except  for 
park  purposes  and  are  on  each  $100  of  assessed  value  of  property- 


CHAPTER  VI 
ELECTIONS  AND  THE  BALLOT 

References  : 

1.  The  Election  Laws  of  Illinois,  issued  by  the  secretary  of  State; 

also  by  election  commissioners  of  Chicago;  also  issued  by 
county  clerk. 

2.  The  Session  Laws  of  1913,  pp.  307-333 :  for  1915,  pp.  393-399- 

Principal  Election  Districts. 

A.  Congressional,  to  elect  one  representative  for  Congress. 

The  number  depends  upon  the  population  as  deter- 
mined by  the  Federal  census  taken  every  ten  years. 
At  present  there  are  twenty-five  Congressional  dis- 
tricts, because  the  last  General  Assembly  failed  to 
reapportion  the  State.  Nevertheless,  Illinois  has 
twenty-seven  Congressmen  on  account  of  the  in- 
crease in  population,  and  the  two  additional  are 
elected  Nov.,  even  years,  **  at  large,"  or  by  the  entire 
State,  instead  of  by  districts. 

B.  Fifty-one  Senatorial,   to  elect  one   State   senator  and 

three  State  representatives  for  the  General  Assembly 
at  Springfield. 

C.  Seven  Judicial  districts  to  elect  one  judge  each  for  the 

State  supreme  court. 

D.  Eighteen  circuit  districts  to  elect  three  judges  in  each, 

except  the  eighteenth  (Cook  County),  where  twenty 
circuit    and    eighteen    superior    judges    are    now 
chosen.     Appellate  judges  are  appointed  by  the  su- 
99 


loo     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

preme  court  from  elected  circuit  judges,  and  the  four 
appellate  districts  into  which  the  State  is  divided 
are  only  for  the  purpose  of  holding  sessions  of  the 
appellate  court,  assigning  judges,  and  electing  a  clerk 
of  the  appellate  court. 

E.  School  districts,  to  elect  three  school  directors  and  three 

trustees  in  country  districts,  or  members  of  boards 
of  education  in  villages  and  small  cities. 

F.  Precincts,   subdivisions  of  v^ards  to  provide  sufficient 

polling  places  for  elections  in  cities. 

Qualifications  of  a  Legal  Voter  in  Illinois. 

A.  Citizen  of  the  United   States,   either  native  born  or 

naturalized. 

B.  At  least  twenty-one  years  old. 

C.  Three  residence  qualifications. 

1.  One  year  in  the  State.   . 

2.  Ninety  days  in  the  county. 

3.  Thirty  days  in  the  election  district.     In  the  city 

this  means  a  precinct;  in  the  country,  a  town- 
ship; in  the  seventeen  non-township  counties, 
an  '^  election  precinct."  These  five  provisions 
are  in  the  State  constitution  and  can  not  be 
changed  without  an  amendment,  in  the  case  of 
the  election  of  any  constitutional  officer.^ 
They  apply  to  women  voters  exactly  the  same 
as  to  men. 

^  These  same  qualifications  have  generally  been  prescribed  by  the 
Legislature  in  the  election  of  other  officers  whose  places  have  been 
created  by  the  Legislature.  This  has  not  always  been  the  case,  as 
under  an  agricultural  drainage  law  of  1885,  "adult  owners  of  real 
estate  "  were  the  only  qualified  electors  in  such  drainage  districts. 


ELECTIONS  AND'THE  BAlLWTf  : '       loi 

Election  Officers!  (for  Chicago).  Three  election 
commissioners  are  appointed  by  the  county  judge  for  three 
years.  The  board  must  be  bi-partisan,  no  more  than  two 
from  the  same  party.  The  salary  is  $4,000  per  year.  The 
chief  clerk  receives  $5,000  per  year  and  there  is  an  assistant 
chief  clerk  at  $3,000  per  year.  The  real  work  of  the  board, 
as  usual,  is  done  by  these  employees.  The  duties  of  the 
board  are  to  appoint  all  the  judges  and  clerks  of  election, 
have  charge  of  all  printing  and  the  distribution  of  the  bal- 
lots, of  the  ballot-boxes,  polling-booths,  registration  lists, 
the  selection  of  polhng-places,  counting  the  ballots,  and  all 
work  connected  in  any  way  with  an  election.  The  county 
judge  has  legal  supervision  over  all  elections.  Chicago 
had  2,191  precincts  at  the  elections  in  November,  19 16. 
Each  precinct  contains  300  voters  -  as  nearly  as  may  be, 
and  its  polling  place  must  have  one  booth  for  each  seventy- 
five  voters.  For  this  reason  you  usually  find  four  polling 
booths  in  each  polling-place.  There  are  three  judges  and 
two  clerks  appointed  for  each  precinct,  paid  $5.00  (Cook 
County)  per  day  for  four  or  five  days'  work,  (i)  In  the 
election  districts  in  the  counties,  except  Cook,  the  pay  of 
election  officers  is  only  $3.00  per  day. 

Registration  (in  Chicago).  There  are  two  general 
registration  days,  Saturday  and  Tuesday,  four  and  three 
weeks  before  election.  An  amendment  to  the  primary  law 
adds  two  new  registration  days,  one  before  each  primary 
election  in  February  and  September  (Session  Laws,  1913). 
The  three  judges  of  election  in  each  precinct  form  a  board 
of  registry.  Each  voter  must  register  in  person  at  the  poll- 
ing place  in  his  precinct,  giving  name,  residence,  age,  nativ- 
ity, citizenship  in  the  United  States,  to  the  judges  of  elec- 

2  In  country  districts,  there  are  about  400  voters  to  a  precinct. 


102  /ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

tion.  These  registration'  lists  are  verified  afterward  by 
the  two  clerks  of  each  precinct  acting  as  canvassers.  The 
revised  lists  are  sent  to  the  election  commissioners  in  the 
city  hall,  who  order  the  names  and  addresses,  arranged  by 
streets  and  blocks,  printed.  Other  information  obtained 
is  kept  secret,  such  as  the  ages  of  women  voters  register- 
ing! 

Any  voter  on  application  can  get  an  accurate  list  of  all 
legally  qualified  voters  in  his  precinct  without  charge. 
These  lists  are  used  by  all  the  political  parties  through  their 
precinct  captains  and  election  workers  to  check  up  the  vote 
and  aid  in  getting  voters  to  the  polls  on  election  day. 

Registration  in  Country  Districts.  Wherever  the 
"  Cities  and  Villages  Election  Act  "  has  not  been  adopted, 
e.  g.,  in  Evanston,  Blue  Island,  Washington  Heights,  the 
county  board  appoints  three  judges  of  election  for  each 
election  district  and  each  judge  appoints  one  clerk.  The 
three  -judges  form  the  board  of  registry  for  the  district  and 
meet  three  weeks  before  the  election.  At  this  time  it  is 
their  duty  to  make  a  new  registration  list  by  transferring 
from  the  poll  lists  of  the  last  general  election  the  names 
and  addresses  of  all  legal  voters  of  the  district  and  adding 
thereto  any  new  names  of  which  they  have  knowledge. 

A  voter  may  send  by  mail  to  the  judges  on  registration 
day  his  name  and  address  and  that  of  his  neighbor,  if  he 
chooses,  and  the  judges  will  register  such  names.  These 
lists  are  verified  by  the  clerks,  printed  and  posted  in  some 
conspicuous  place  where  any  one  can  consult  them. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  registration  is  much  more  informal 
and  less  exacting  in  the  country  districts  than  in  Chicago. 
The  restrictions  on  voting,  in  a  great  city  full  of  stran- 
gers and  containing  a  large  floating  and  foreign-born  pop- 


ELECTIONS  AND  THE  BALLOT  103 

ulation  need  to  be  much  more  severe  than  in  a  small 
city,  or  in  the  country  where  neighbors  know  each  other 
well. 

Primary  Elections.  The  Illinois  General  Assembly 
passed  the  present  primary  election  law  at  a  special  session 
in  19 10.  The  law  was  due  largely  to  the  efforts  of  Gov- 
ernor Charles  S.  Deneen,  who  called  a  special  session  of  the 
Legislature  for  this  purpose.  A  primary  election  allows 
voters  to  nominate  directly  candidates  for  office,  and  places 
such  popular  nominations  under  a  law  similar  to  the  regular 
election  law.  The  present  primary  law  is  the  fourth  passed. 
Three  have  been  declared  unconstitutional  by  the  supreme 
court. 

At  the  primary  held  in  February,  April,  or  September, 
according  to  the  office  to  be  filled,  every  voter  must  declare 
his  party  publicly  before  he  is  allowed  to  vote  for  the 
nomination  of  candidates  for  office.  If  he  has  voted  for 
the  candidate  of  any  other  party  within  two  years  preceding 
the  primary  election,  or  has  signed  a  nominating  petition 
for  any  independent  candidate,  or  a  candidate  of  another 
party,  he  can  not  vote  at  that  primary.  Voters  must  not 
change  their  minds  about  their  party  affiliations  oftener 
than  once  in  two  years. 

These  are  bad  provisions  and  keep  many  voters  away, 
from  the  primaries,  where  their  votes  are  needed  to  nomi- 
nate suitable  men  for  office.  The  Illinois  primary  law  is 
planned  to  encourage  partisanship  and  discourage  independ- 
ent voting,  a  distinctly  bad  policy,  that  tends  to  destroy 
the  good  effect  of  a  primary  law.  The  principle  of  the 
primary  law  is  admirable,  and  represents  a  long  step  in 
advance  because  the  rank  and  file  of  a  party  now  have  some 
direct  control  through  the  primary  election  over  the  nominar 


104     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

tions  of  candidates  and  the  choice  of  party  committees. 
Should  any  one  desire  to  run  as  an  independent  candidate 
for  office,  he  can  still  do  so  by  getting  a  petition  signed  by 
a  prescribed  number  of  legal  voters,  the  number  of  signa- 
tures depending  on  the  office.  But  as  long  as  we  are  not 
allowed  non-partisan  ballots  at  either  the  primaries  or  the 
regular  elections,  the  independent  candidate  labors  under  a 
very  great  disadvantage,  as  he  lacks  the  powerful  aid  of 
the  organized  machinery  of  the  regular  parties  and  the  help 
of  a  party  campaign  fund.  The  chances  of  election  of  the 
candidate  nominated  by  petition  are  exceedingly  slender. 
Illinois  has  great  need  of  a  non-partisan  election  law  that 
will  do  away  with  the  party  circle  for  all  judicial,  city, 
town,  county,  and  sanitary  district  elections.  Such  a  bill 
was  defeated  in  the  last  Legislature. 

Committeemen  for  Political  Parties.  The  law  also 
provides  for  the  election  of  a  precinct  committeeman  in 
each  precinct  and  one  member  of  the  State  central  commit- 
tee of  each  political  party  from  each  congressional  dis- 
trict in  the  State.  These  elected  committees  now  control 
the  party ;  but  the  old  congressional,  county,  and  State  con- 
ventions (2)  are  still  retained  to  draw  up  platforms,  discuss 
party  management,  and  select  delegates  for  the  National 
nominating  convention  that  selects  the  candidates  for  Pres- 
ident and  Vice-President. 

The  Election.  Description  of  the  Ballot.  Since  1891, 
all  voting  for  officers  in  Illinois  has  been  by  ballot,  and  the 
Australian  form,  with  the  party  columns  and  circles,  is  used. 
In  counties  under  township  organization,  having  town 
meetings,  the  viva  voce  method  ("by  living  voice"),  still 
prevails,  as  to  propositions.  Otherwise  the  Australian  bal- 
lot is  used.     The  official  ballot  is  white:  specimen  ballots 


ELECTIONS  AND  THE  BALLOT  105 

in  color  must  be  posted  in  conspicuous  places  at  least  five 
days  before  election  to  enable  the  voters  to  study  them  and 
learn  the  names  of  the  various  candidates  for  office.  As 
there  are  from  300  to  400  names  on  the  "  blanket  "  ballots 
used  in  Cook  County  at  the  general  election  in  November 
of  the  presidential  years,  it  is  very  necessary  to  study  the 
ballot  beforehand  if  you  vote  intelligently.  Cook  County 
elects  twenty-three  (23)  executive  and  judicial  officials, 
thirty-eight  (38)  circuit  and  superior  judges,  and  fifteen 
(15)  county  commissioners  —  seventy  names  to  be  placed 
on  the  ballot  under  each  party  column  at  each  quadrennial 
November  election.  This  is  one  of  our  most  striking  illus- 
trations of  the  great  need  of  ballot  reform  through  a  shorter 
ballot.  Sample  ballots  can  be  secured  beforehand  from 
county  clerks  or  city  clerks. 

The  names  of  all  candidates  are  on  the  same  ballot,  ar- 
ranged under  their  party  columns.  A  small  square  at  left 
of  each  name  and  a  circle  at  the  left  of  the  party  name 
enable  the  voter  to  mark  his  ballot. 

At  the  polling-place  of  his  precinct,  an  election  judge 
gives  him  an  official  ballot,  after  the  voter  has  declared  his 
name  and  residence,  and  it  has  been  found  and  checked  by 
the  clerk  in  the  registration  book.  The  clerk  must  also 
enter  the  voter's  name  and  residence  on  a  poll  list,  which 
is  afterward  compared  with  the  list  of  registered  voters, 
showing  exactly  what  percentage  of  qualified  voters  in  that 
precinct  used  their  voting  privilege. 

Marking  the  Ballot.  The  voter  enters  a  polling-booth, 
where  writing  material  is  provided,  and  places  an  X  in  the 
party  circle  if  he  wishes  to  vote  a  straight  ticket,  or  in  the 
square  opposite  the  name  of  every  candidate  for  whom 
he  desires   to   vote   if   he   wishes   to  vote   a  "  split  '*   or 


io6     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

"  scratch  "  ticket.  The  latter  is  independent  voting,  where 
the  voter  refuses  to  be  bound  by  any  one  party  and  chooses 
the  best  man  nominated  regardless  of  party.  The  voter 
is  absolutely  free  to  split  his  ballot  at  any  regular  election 
whether  he  has  voted  at  the  primary  or  not. 

The  voter  is  allov^ed  ten  minutes  in  the  polling-booth 
to  mark  his  ballot,  if  no  one  is  waiting  to  use  the  booth; 
otherwise,  only  five  minutes.  Should  a  voter  be  crippled 
or  blind,  and  unable  to  mark  his  ballot  personally,  then 
two  election  officers  of  different  political  parties  may  enter 
the  polling-booth  and  mark  his  ballot  according  to  his  dic- 
tation. No  drunken  person  may  receive  any  assistance  in 
marking  his  ballot. 

The  judge  must  put  his  own  initials  on  the  back  of  the 
ballot  given  the  voter,  and  the  latter  must  fold  his  ballot 
with  those  initials  out  before  leaving  the  polling-booth, 
and  must  then  watch  the  election  officer  drop  his  ballot 
in  the  ballot-box.  The  ballot-box  must  be  in  plain  view 
and  kept  locked  and  never  left  unguarded  during  the  elec- 
tion hours. 

These  are  all  legal  provisions  and  there  is  a  common- 
sense  reason  for  every  one.  The  great  object  of  the  Aus- 
tralian ballot  is  to  secure  secrecy,  an  honest  election,  and 
an  orderly,  quiet  election  day.  Polling-places  can  not  be 
in  or  adjoining  a  saloon,  must  be  in  a  clean,  light,  respect- 
able room  on  a  street,  instead  of  an  alley.  The  use  of  the 
schoolhouses  for  election  places  is  gaining  favor.  There 
is  no  valid  reason  why  the  people's  own  property  should 
not  be  thus  used  with  due  regard  to  its  primary  purpose 
as  a  school.  This  would  save  thousands  of  dollars  every 
election  now  paid  for  rent  of  polling-places  and  provide 
clean,  respectable  election  places  as  well. 


ELECTIONS  AND  THE  BALLOT  107 

The  polls  are  open  in  large  cities  from  6.  a.  m.  to  4  p.  m. ; 
in  country  districts  and  small  cities  from  7  a.  m.  to  5  p. 
m.  Every  voter  is  allowed  two  hours'  absence  from  his 
work  without  loss  of  wages  to  vote,  if  he  gives  due  notice 
to  his  employer  and  arranges  the  hours  with  him.  All 
primary  and  election  days  are  legal  holidays  for  banks  and 
government  offices,  but  not  for  schools  or  business  in  gen- 
eral. 

Elaborate  "  Cards  of  Instructions  to  Voters  "  are  posted 
in  every  precinct  ten  days  before  the  election  and  serve 
as  a  guide  to  the  regular  polling  place  in  each  precinct  be- 
cause one  card  is  always  posted  on  the  door. 

In  Chicago,  Cicero,  and  East  St.  Louis,  where  the  elec- 
tion act  has  been  adopted,  an  unregistered  voter  must  lose 
his  vote ;  he  can  not  swear  it  in  on  election  day.  But  else- 
where in  the  State  he  has  this  privilege  if  he  brings  a  reg- 
istered householder  (one  who  owns  or  rents  a  house)  as 
witness  to  his  legal  qualifications. 

Criticisms.  The  principal  objections  to  the  Australian 
ballot  as  used  in  Illinois  are  ( i )  the  required  party  column 
and  circle;  (2)  the  large  number  of  names  and  the  size 
of  the  sheet  used,  making  the  ballot  cumbersome  to  handle, 
complicated  to  mark  and  difficult  to  count. 

Counting  the  Ballots.  The  counting  begins  as  soon  as 
the  polls  are  closed  and  is  done  by  the  judges  and  clerks 
of  the  election,  who  make  out  the  tally-sheets  and  report 
the  results  to  the  county  clerk,  or  to  the  election  commis- 
sioners. Each  party  and  candidate  is  allowed  a  watcher 
while  the  counting  goes  on  to  see  that  no  mistakes  are  made. 
In  spite  of  all  precautions,  there  are  usually  protests  filed 
with  the  county  judge  after  every  election,  claiming  a  wrong 
count  of  the  ballots.     Then  the  votes  must  be  canvassed. 


io8     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

or  even  entirely  recounted,  by  order  of  the  county  judge  at 
great  expense  of  time  and  money. 

A  Presidential  Preference  Vote  was  provided  by  act  of 
the  Legislature  of  191 3.  This  provides  that  the  name  of 
any  candidate  for  president  be  printed  on  the  primary 
ballot  under  the  name  of  his  political  party,  provided  a 
petition  is  presented  "  not  more  than  sixty  or  less  than 
thirty  days  before  the  April  primary,"  signed  by  ''  not  less 
than  1,000  or  more  than  2,000  primary  electors  of  the 
party  of  which  he  is  a  candidate."  "  This  vote  shall  be 
for  the  sole  purpose  of  securing  an  expression  of  the  senti- 
ment and  will  of  the  party  voters  with  respect  to  candidates 
for  nomination  for  said  office."  (Session  Laws,  191 3,  pp. 
330,  331.)  In  a  separate  act,  provision  is  also  made  for 
the  nomination  of  candidates  for  United  States  senator  at 
the  April  primary.  The  next  United  States  senator  from 
Illinois  will  be  nominated  at  the  April  primaries  and  elected 
by  popular  vote  at  the  general  election  in  November  19 18. 

The  "  Little  Ballot."  The  "  little  ballot  "  is  the  term 
applied  to  a  bond  issue,  or  any  proposition  submitted  on  a 
separate  ballot  to  the  people  for  their  approval  or  rejec- 
tion. This  is  the  only  form  of  the  referendum  possessed 
at  present  by  the  voters  of  Illinois.  A  comprehensive  "  1. 
and  R."  (initiative  and  referendum)  "joint  resolution" 
for  a  constitutional  amendment  passed  the  State  senate  but 
was  defeated  by  one  vote  in  the  house  in  June,  1913. 

Initiative  and  Referendum.  A  true  referendum  also 
refers  to  the  people  certain  laws,  passed  or  defeated,  by 
the  General  Assembly.  If  approved  by  a  majority  of  votes 
cast  at  any  general  or  special  election,  it  becomes  a  law 
without  the  consent  of  the  Legislature. 

The  initiative  is  the  other  half  of  the  people's  right  to 


ELECTIONS  AND  THE  BALLOT  109 

make  laws  for  themselves  if  they  can  not  secure  a  needed 
law  from  the  Legislature.  On  a  petition  signed  by  a  cer- 
tain number  of  voters,  a  law  considered  necessary  can  be 
proposed  by  the  people  without  any  action  on  the  part  of 
the  General  Assembly.  It  may  then  be  submitted  at  the 
next  general  election,  passed  by  a  referendum  vote,  and  be 
placed  on  the  statute  books  through  the  direct  action  of  the 
voters. 

Public  Policy  Law.  The  General  Assembly  in  1901 
passed  what  is  known  as  the  "  public  policy  "  or  "  public 
opinion  "  law.  This  provides  that  upon  petition  of  ten 
per  cent,  of  the  voters  of  the  State,  any  question  of  public 
policy  may  be  submitted  to  the  voters  at  any  State,  or  gen- 
eral election.  No  more  than  three  such  questions  can  be 
submitted  at  any  one  election  and  they  must  be  printed  on  a 
separate  ballot,  known  popularly  as  the  "  little  ballot." 
This  vote  of  the  people  in  no  wise  binds  the  Legislature, 
but  is  merely  to  serve  as  an  index  of  public  opinion  on  any 
important  matter  of  public  policy  and  to  indicate  what  the 
people  want.  Such  questions  as  State-wide  civil  service, 
initiative  and  referendum,  and  a  corrupt  practices  act  have 
received  approval  at  the  hands  of  Illinois  voters  through 
the  public  policy  law.  But  no  General  Assembly  has  yet 
obeyed  the  desire  of  the  voters  on  these  important  public 
reforms. 

Voting  Machines.  Illinois  has  a  Voting  Machine 
Law,  passed  in  1903,  whereby  any  city,  village,  or  town 
may  adopt  a  suitable  voting  machine  for  use  in  all  elections 
except  for  school  officers.  The  term  "  suitable  machine  " 
is  defined  by  the  board  of  voting-machine  commissionersi 
consisting  of  the  governor  and  two  mechanical  experts  who 
are  to  examine  and  pass  on  all  machines  submitted  to  elec- 


no     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

tion  officers  in  the  State.  The  law  makes  many  restric- 
tions and  requirements  for  any  recommended  voting-ma- 
chine. Under  its  authority  a  contract  for  i,ooo  voting 
machines  costing  nearly  one  million  dollars  was  signed  by 
the  election  commissioners  in  Chicago  in  191 1.  Because  of 
haste  in  letting  the  contract  and  carelessness  in  accepting 
untested  machines  in  large  numbers,  there  were  objections 
by  many  citizens  to  this  contract  when  a  large  appropria- 
tion was  asked  from  the  city  council  in  part  payment.  A 
legislative  investigation  of  the  entire  contract  was  ordered 
by  the  General  Assembly  and  is  still  incomplete.  The  Chi- 
cago Bureau  of  Public  Efficiency  has  two  admirable  reports 
on  this  voting-machine  contract.  Study  these  reports  to 
find  out  how  municipal  contracts  are  too  often  let. 

Criticism.  The  election  laws  issued  by  the  election  com- 
missioners for  Chicago  and  the  same  law  applied  to  the  rest 
of  the  State,  issued  by  the  secretary  of  state,  contains  sev- 
eral hundred  pages.  To  this  mass  of  material  for  the  guid- 
ance of  election  officers  must  be  added  the  primary  law  with 
scores  of  amendments.  To  make  the  situation  worse,  every 
legislature  piles  on  amendments.  Great  are  the  difficulties 
confronting  judges  and  clerks  of  election  in  applying  the 
machinery  of  such  a  complicated  law,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
troubles  of  the  average  voter.  Can  an  ignorant  voter  be 
taught  to  "  split  his  ballot  "  ?  No  wonder  a  majority  of  the 
voters  take  refuge  in  a  cross  in  the  party  circle  and  therefore 
play  into  the  hands  of  the  politicians  who  run  the  party  ma- 
chines. A  shorter,  more  simple  ballot  is  imperatively  de- 
manded in  the  interests  of  good  government  in  this  State. 
Illinois  suffers  more  than  any  other  State,  except  New 
York,  from  a  multiplicity  of  elective  officers,  and  Cook 
County  has  the  longest  ballot,  at  the  quadrennial  November 


ELECTIONS  AND  THE  BALLOT  iii 

elections,  owing  to  the  seventy  odd  county  officers  to  be 
selected  by  ballot. 

The  Cost  of  Elections.  The  cost  of  elections  for  Chi- 
cago and  Cook  County  in  19 12  nearly  reached  the  million- 
dollar  mark.  Yet  there  has  been  an  enormous  increase  in 
the  cost  of  these  elections  in  the  last  three  years  due  to 
more  election,  primary  and  registration  days;  to  increased 
pay  for  election  officers  in  Chicago,  granted  by  the  legisla- 
ture, and  to  the  increase  in  the  number  of  precincts  in  Chi- 
cago and  in  the  county  at  large.  The  new  women  voters 
also  add  their  share  to  this  growing  cost  of  elections;  but 
the  women  are  certain  their  votes  are  worth  to  the  com- 
munity all  they  cost.  The  grand  total  of  the  appropriations 
made  by  the  Chicago  council  and  the  Cook  County  board 
for  the  elections  in  19 16  is  the  astounding  sum  of  $1,906,- 
405.  It  seems  hardly  credible  that  it  needs  to  cost  such 
an  enormous  amount  for  the  voters  of  one  county  to  regis- 
ter their  will  at  the  ballot  box  in  a  presidential  year,  even 
altho  that  county  contains  over  one-third  the  population 
of  Illinois.  If  the  city  and  judicial  primaries  were  abol- 
ished, a  large  saving  would  be  effected  —  probably  a  half 
million  dollars.  Nominations  for  city  and  judicial  officers 
should  be  hy  petition  only  and  party  columns  and  party 
names  should  he  eliminated  from  judicial  and  municipal 
ballots. 

The  heaviest  single  item  in  election  expenses  is  the  pay  of 
the  judges  and  clerks.  There  are  three  judges  and  two 
clerks  to  a  precinct,  each  receiving  $5  a  day  for  his  serv- 
ices, except  in  Chicago,  where  the  pay  is  higher  on  account 
of  the  more  exacting  duties  required  of  election  officers  and 
because  of  compulsory  registration.  There  are  now  nearly 
2,200  precincts  in  Chicago  alone  and  the  pay  of  judges  and 


112      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

clerks  for  registration,  primary  and  election  days,  rental  of 
polling  places,  printing  ballots,  cartage  of  ballot  boxes  and 
booths,  legal  advertising  and  for  all  other  legitimate  election 
expenses  amount  to  the  spectacular  sum  of  $1,206,405  for 
the  presidential  year  of  19 16.  There  are  209  precincts  in 
Cook  County  outside  of  Chicago  and  the  County  board  has 
appropriated  $720,000  for  the  county's  share  of  the  election 
bills  for  19 1 6.  Some  way  will  have  to  be  found  to  reduce 
these  huge  and  constantly  increasing  election  bills. 

One  economy  could  be  effected  by  reducing  the  number 
of  elected  officials,  thus  cutting  down  the  size  of  the  ballot 
and  saving  a  tremendous  amount  of  time  in  counting  the 
votes  for  candidates  —  a  reform  greatly  needed  in  the  in- 
terest of  better  as  well  as  less  expensive  government.  Some 
relief  can  come  through  legislative  action,  but  the  "  short 
cut "  to  all  these  changes  and  economies  lies  through  a  con- 
stitutional convention  and  a  new  constitution  adapted  to  the 
needs  of  a  great  and  progressing  State. 


CHAPTER  VII 

JUDICIAL  TRIALS  AND  THE  JURY  SYSTEM 

References  : 

1.  Forman:    American  Republic,  pp.  301-307. 

2.  Forman:    Advanced  Civics,  pp.  377-384. 

3.  James  and  Sanford :    Government  in  State  and  Nation,  pp.  62-69. 

4.  Greene:     Government  of  Illinois,  pp.  146-159. 

5.  Winchell:     Civic  Manual,  pp.  214-218. 

6.  Guitteau:     Government  and  Politics  in  United  States,  pp.  1 15-127, 

7.  Boynton  and  Upton:    Supplement,  pp.  51-6. 

8.  McCleary:     Studies  in   Civics,   ch.    ii,   iii,   vii,   and   xv.     (These 

chapters  are  especially  valuable  for  high-school  pupils,  though 
not  written  for  Illinois.) 

"  No  man's  property  is  safe  and  no  man's  welfare  is  assured  where 
justice  is  denied  to  the  poor,  or  where  crime  goes  unpunished;  no 
State  can  prosper  where  human  rights  are  not  respected." — David  A. 
Wells. 

There  are  two  parties  to  every  suit:  The  plaintiff,  or 
complainant,  the  party  who  brings  the  suit,  claiming  he  has 
suffered  some  wrong;  the  defendant,  or  person  accused  of 
having  committed  the  wrong. 

"  Cases  arise  in  two  ways :  Through  differences  in  the 
interpretation  of  the  law,  and  through  its  violation." 

There  are  two  kinds  of  cases:  Criminal,  where  a  law 
has  been  broken  and  therefore  the  plaintiff  is  always  the 
State ;  civil^  where  a  private  right  is  to  be  protected  or  en- 
forced and  the  resulting  suit  is  between  two  persons  or  cor- 
porations. 

Common  examples  of  causes  of  civil  actions  are  non- 
113 


114     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

fulfilment  of  contracts,  as  a  failure  to  finish  a  building  on 
time;  failure  to  pay  lawful  debts,  as  a  butcher's  or  tailor's 
bill ;  relations  of  employer  and  employee,  as  where  damages 
are  claimed  because  of  injuries  received  while  at  work. 

All  criminal  actions  are  defined  by  law  and  penalties  are 
provided  for  their  commission.  A  civil  suit  calls  for  dam- 
ages in  the  shape  of  money ;  a  criminal  suit  means  imprison- 
ment, or  a  fine,  sometimes  both. 

STEPS  IN   CIVIL  ACTION 

I.  Preliminary  to  the  Trial. 

1.  Complaint,  sworn  to  by  the  plaintiff  before  a  jus- 

tice of  the  peace,  police  magistrate,  or  judge,  caus- 
-  ing  him  to  issue  the 

2.  Summons.     This  is  served  on  the  defendant,  di- 

recting him  to  appear  in  court  himself,  or  by  his 
attorney. 

3.  Pleadings:  drawn  up  by  the  lawyers  on  both  sides, 

stating  the  charge  and  the  answer  to  it.     Plead- 
ings are  always  in  writing. 

4.  Venires,  or  summons  to  the  jurors,  served  if  a  jury 

is    required.     Frequently    a    jury    is    waived    by 
both  sides  and  the  case  is  tried  by  the  judge. 

5.  Subpoenas,   or   summons   to   witnesses,   compelling 

them  to  appear  at  the  trial  to  give  their  testimony 
"  under  penalty  "  should  they  fail  to  appear. 

II.  The  Trial 

1.  Opening  Statement,  usually  made  by  the  plaintiff's 

lawyer,  stating  the  ground  of  action. 

2.  Securing  a  Jury.     Jurors  are  examined  as  to  their 

fitness  and  whether  they  can  honestly  "  swear  to 


JUDICIAL  TRIALS  AND  JURY  SYSTEM      115 

try  the  case  according  to  the  law  and  evidence 
without  prejudice  or  favor."  Challenges  are  al- 
lowed both  sides  and  are  of  two  kinds :  "  For 
cause,"  and  ''  Peremptory,"  without  any  cause 
given.  The  number  of  these  challenges  allowed 
depends  entirely  on  the  kind  of  case  and  is  pre- 
scribed by  law. 

3.  When  the  jury  has  been  accepted  and  sworn  in,  the 

witnesses  for  the  plaintiff  are  called  first.  They 
are  put  on  oath,  give  their  testimony,  and  are 
cross-examined  by  the  attorney  for  the  defend- 
ant. The  witnesses  for  the  defense  are  then 
questioned  by  the  defendant's  attorney  and  cross- 
examined  by  the  plaintiff's  lawyer.  The  evidence 
includes  the  testimony  of  all  the  witnesses  and 
any  documents,  or  legal  papers,  offered  as  part 
of  the  evidence. 

4.  Now  come  the  arguments  of  the  lawyers  in  behalf 

of  their  clients,  when  they  review  the  case  and 
present  the  facts  brought  out  by  the  witnesses  in 
the  most  favorable  light  for  their  'client. 

5.  Charge  to  the  Jury  is  given  by  the  judge  to  instruct 

them  in  the  law  concerning  this  special  case,  or 
if  an  equity  case,  referring  to  the  decisions  of 
courts  involving  the  same  general  principles. 
This  is  not  given  in  a  justice  of  the  peace's  court 
because  such  a  petty  officer  is  not  required  to  be 
a  lawyer  or  especially  familiar  with  points  of  law. 

6.  The  case  then  goes  to  the  jury,  who  retire  to  make 

up  their  verdict,  or  decision.  This  verdict,  in 
a  civil  action,  states  who  wins  the  suit  and  recom- 
mends a  certain  amount  of  damages  in  addition 


ii6     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

to  the  costs  of  the  suit,  which  must  be  borne  by 
the  loser. 
7.  The  judgment  is  given  by  the  judge  in  accordance 
with  the  verdict,  and  includes  damages,  the 
amount  awarded  the  winning  party  and  all  costs 
of  the  suit,  except  lawyers'  fees.  Each  side  must 
pay  its  own  lawyers.  If  the  judgment  is  not 
satisfied  within  a  certain  time  by  paying  it,  the 
victorious  party  secures  from  the  court  an  exe- 
cution. This  directs  the  forcible  carrying  out  of 
the  judgment  by  the  sale  of  property.  In  Illinois 
$400  worth  of  personal  property  for  a  married 
man  is  "exempt  from  execution";  $100  worth 
if  he  is  single. 

Of  course  the  loser  often  appeals  the  case  to  a  higher  court, 
or  gets  the  judge  to  grant  a  new  trial,  so  it  may  be  years 
before  the  judgment  is  paid,  even  if  it  should  be  sustained 
in  the  higher  court. 

CRIMINAL  ACTION 

In  a  criminal  case  a  complaint  must  be  sworn  to  before 
a  justice  of  the  peace,  or  other  judicial  officer  and  at  once 
a  warrant  for  the  arrest  of  the  supposed  criminal  is  issued 
and  served  by  a  constable,  sheriff,  or  policeman,  according 
to  the  court  where  it  is  obtained.  The  offender  is  brought 
before  the  court,  and  if  the  charge  is  a  misdemeanor,  or 
small  offense,  as  petty  larceny  —  stealing  under  ten  dollars 
in  value  —  or  disorderly  conduct,  the  case  may  be  tried 
at  once  before  the  justice  of  the  peace,  or  a  municipal  court. 
But  should  the  charge  be  a  felony,  or  "  high  crime,"  as 
highway  robbery,  and  therefore  a  penitentiary  offense,  then 

t 

X 


JUDICIAL  TRIALS  AND  JURY  SYSTEM      117 

the  accused  person  by  Illinois  law  must  ''  await  the  action 
of  a  grand  jury  "  and  be  indicted  by  majority  vote  of  that 
body  of  twenty-three  jurors  before  he  can  be  tried.  His 
case  may  not  be  reached  in  weeks,  and  even  then  the  grand 
jury  may  find  no  "  true  bill  "  against  him.  To  compel  a 
person  only  suspected  of  crime  to  lie  in  jail  under  such 
circumstances,  is  unjust. 

So  bail  is  allowed,  and  on  presenting  proper  sureties  for 
his  bail  bond,  or  money  pledged  to  assure  his  presence  at 
the  trial,  he  may  be  set  at  liberty  pending  the  action  of  the 
grand  jury.  The  grand  jury  need  not  wait  for  the  State's 
attorney  to  offer  the  indictment  against  the  person,  but  they 
may  bring  in  a  presentment  when  they  know  of  evidence 
showing  a  person  has  broken  some  law,  and  may  vote  that 
a  *'  true  bill  "  should  i^3ue  against  the  person.  But  usually 
the  State's  attorney  brings  in  the  evidence  against  the  per- 
son accused  —  all  the  grand  jury  ever  hears  —  and  indict- 
ment follows  if  enough  evidence  is  produced.^  (i) 

For  the  trial  a  petit,  or  "  little  "  trial  jury  of  twelve  un- 
prejudiced men  is  necessary,  and  when  they  are  sworn  in, 
the  arraignment  of  the  prisoner  follows,  when  the  indict- 
ment is  read  stating  the  charge  against  him. 

This  is  followed  by  his  plea,  or  answer  to  the  arraign- 
ment. Should  he  plead  "  guilty,"  and  "  throw  himself  on 
the  mercy  of  the  court,"  he  usually  receives  a  lighter  sen- 
tence from  the  judge.  But  if  he  pleads  "  not  guilty,"  then 
the  witnesses  are  called  and  the  steps  in  the  trial  are  similar 
to  those  in  a  civil  action,  except  a  sentence  —  usually  im- 
prisonment—  is  given  instead  of  the  judgment.  If  the 
sentence  is  imprisonment,  the  prisoner  is  taken  to  the  peni- 

1  For  comparison  of  a  grand  and  petit  jury  in  Illinois,  see  p.  122. 


ii8      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

tentiary  at  Joliet  or  Chester,^  by  the  sheriff,  or  his  deputy, 
and  begins  serving  his  time.  By  good  conduct  after  one 
year  in  prison,  he  may  be  paroled  and  allowed  to  resume 
his  ordinary  work  on  condition  he  report  at  regular  in- 
tervals to  the  warden  of  the  prison,  or  to  an  adult  probation 
officer  to  whom  he  is  assigned. 

He  may  have  an  indeterminate  sentence  given  him  by  the 
judge,  and  then  good  conduct  while  in  prison  will  diminish 
his  time  by  many  months.  He  may  also  seek  the  governor's 
pardoning  power  and  then  his  case  goes  first  to  the  board 
of  pardons  for  investigation  and  their  recommendation,  al- 
though the  governor  is  not  obliged  to  follow  the  recom- 
mendation. 

Illinois  allows  capital  punishment  for  "  murder  in  the 
first  degree,"  m^^.,  a  cold-blooded  murder.  The  execu- 
tion of  five  young  men  in  191 2  in  Cook  County  jail  for  the 
atrocious  murder  of  a  truck  farmer  is  the  most  recent  illus- 
tration of  capital  punishment  on  a  large  scale  in  Illinois. 
Such  wholesale  execution  in  the  name  of  the  law  has  led 
to  a  growing  demand  that  capital  punishment  be  abolished 
by  the  Legislature.  A  bill  to  this  effect  failed  in  the  last 
General  Assembly,  19 13.  Give  three  arguments  for  and 
against  the  death  penalty  for  murder. 

Penal  Institutions.  Illinois  maintains  three  penal  in- 
stitutions for  the  entire  State  :  The  penitentiary  at  Joliet ; 
the  southern  penitentiary  at  Chester  for  insane  criminals; 
State  reformatory  for  boys  over  seventeen  at  Pontiac.  All 
female  prisoners  are  kept  m  the  women's  quarters  at  Joliet. 

The  Legislature  in  1903  abolished  contract  labor  in  the 
prisons  and  substituted  a  board  of  prison  industries  com- 

2  The  State  penitentiary  at  Chester  is  intended  mainly  for  the  criminal 


JUDICIAL  TRIALS  AND  JURY  SYSTEM      119 

posed  of  the  commissioners  of  the  three  penal  institutions. 
This  law  provides  that  the  State  may  employ  not  more 
than  forty  per  cent,  of  its  convicts  in  manufacturing  goods 
to  be  sold  in  open  market,  but  not  until  all  the  needs  of  the 
State  institutions  are  supplied.  The  convicts  now  make 
furniture,  mattresses,  brooms,  cheap  grades  of  clothes, 
shoes,  wooden  ware.  The  remaining  able-bodied  convicts 
must  be  employed  on  work  for  the  State.  There  is.  pro- 
vision under  certain  conditions  to  allow  part  of  the  money 
earned  by  a  convict  to  be  paid  to  his  family  or  relatives. 
He  also  has  an  opportunity  by  this  means  to  save  money 
which  will  be  paid  him  when  he  leaves  the  prison.  The 
net  profits  of  this  convict  labor  for  ten  years  are  $545,000, 
which  has  been  paid  into  the  State  treasury.  This  sum  is 
in  addition  to  machinery  and  equipment  purchased  out  of 
the  profits  and  many  thousand  dollars  set  aside  as  earnings 
of  the  convicts  themselves.  The  larger  share  of  this  prison 
labor  is  employed  crushing  stone  to  be  used  on  the  public 
highways.  There  is  an  immense  demand  for  this  crushed 
stone,  which  is  furnished  free  to  any  township,  county,  or 
road  district  applying  for  it  through  the  State  highway 
commission  and  paying  all  freight  charges.  The  railrpads, 
however,  charge  such  high  rates  that  practically  only  towns 
within  a.  certain  freight  zone  get  the  benefit  of  this  convict- 
made  crushed  stone.  Here  is  an  opportunity  for  the  new 
Public-Utilities  Commission,  which  began  work  in  19 14, 
to  help  the  good  roads  movement  by  compelling  a  juster 
freight  rate  on  prison-crushed  stone  for  road-building. 
There  are  about  1,400  convicts  at  Joliet  and  about  300 
each  at  Pontiac  and  Chester.  A  recent  law  provides  for 
a  new  penitentiary  on  a  farm  of  not  less  than  one  thousand 
acres,  located  near  Joliet,  and  the  prison  at  Chester  is  to 


120     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

be  moved  to  the  same  farm.  Convicts  are  to  be  employed 
out  of  doors  wherever  possible.  Illinois  is  certainly  "  mov- 
ing forward  "  in  her  care  of  criminals.  {Report  of  Board 
of  Prison  Industries j  191 2.) 

Convict  Labor.  Illinois  is  the  first  State  east  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  to  try  the  experiment  of  putting  State 
prisoners  at  road-building.  Colorado  (2),  Washington,  and 
Oregon  have  been  building  roads  with  "  honor  convicts  " 
for  the  last  two  years,  and  the  system  has  proved  of  double 
value ;  the  States  have  fine  roads  at  a  very  low  cost,  and  the 
convicts  gain  much  in  health  and  renewed  self-respect  be- 
cause they  are  treated  like  men. 

A  band  of  forty-five  convicts,  put  solely  on  their  honor, 
were  sent  out  in  August  19 13,  from  Joliet,  to  build  roads 
near  Dixon,  Illinois.  They  were  to  work  as  long  as  the 
weather  permitted  their  camp  to  be  maintained.  No  armed 
guards  were  with  the  men ;  they  wore  the  clothes  of  common 
laborers,  and  had  much  freedom  after  working-hours.  The 
experiment  was  successful  and  has  been  repeated  each  sum- 
mer since  that  year. 

Difficulties  in  Law  Enforcement.  "  Not  officers 
alone,  but  any  citizen,  may  make  a  complaint  against  law- 
breakers. But  private  citizens  find  it  difficult  to  discover 
sufficient  evidence  upon  which  to  make  a  sworn  statement. 
It  is  much  easier  for  the  average  citizen  to  let  such  matters 
alone  and  attend  to  his  own  private  business.  In  the  mean- 
time, public  funds  may  be  stolen,  or  the  public  health  of  the 
community  threatened,  or  the  young  people  put  in  danger 
of  moral  corruption,  all  for  the  lack  of  a  complaint,  specific 
in  its  accusations,  and  supported  by  definite  information. 
These  reasons  most  frequently  answer  the  question,  'Why 
is  not  the  law  enforced  ? '     At  bottom,  it  is  a  question  of 


JUDICIAL  TRIALS  AND  JURY  SYSTEM      121 

public  conscience.  In  communities  where  a  low  moral 
standard  prevails,  a  few  determined  leaders,  willing  to  sac- 
rifice time,  labor,  and  comfort  for  the  public  good,  have 
sometimes  aroused  the  public  to  action.  No  service  to  the 
community  is  more  to  be  commended  than  this."  ^ 

The  Law's  Delays.  "  Other  causes  of  discontent 
with  our  judicial  system  arise  in  connection  with  court  pro- 
cedure. Justice  is  often  delayed  through  the  postponement 
of  cases  for  trivial  reasons.  Criminal  cases  may  drag 
along  for  months,  until  the  public  interest  subsides.  A 
wealthy  litigant  may  secure  postponements  until  the  re- 
sources of  his  poorer  opponent  are  exhausted." 

Notable  groups  of  judges  and  lawyers  all  over  the  coun- 
try are  urging  the  necessity  of  simpler  and  more  direct 
court  procedure.  The  criminal  code  of  Illinois  is  no  more 
confusing  or  complicated  than  the  codes  of  other  States, 
and  they  all  need  revision. 

Another  reason  for  some  of  our  difficulties  was  illustrated 
by  the  recent  resignation  (October  i,  19 13,)  of  the  very 
able  probate  judge  of  Cook  County  because  of  the  corrupt 
political  influences  that  nominate  the  judges.  Judge 
Charles  S.  Cutting  had  served  Cook  County  as  probate 
judge  with  distinguished  ability  for  more  than  fourteen 
years,  and  through  rival  administrations  —  the  best  possi- 
ble proof  of  his  ability ;  —  but  he  refused  to  serve  out  his 
term  as  he  could  not  be  given  freedom  to  conduct  the  work 
of  his  court  according  to  his  own  high  standards  of  justice. 
His  resignation  was  a  stinging  rebuke  to  the  politicians  of 
all  parties,  who  control  the  nomination  and  election  of  our 
judges. 

3  Government  in  State  and  Nation,  James  and  Sandford,  pp.  65,  ^. 


122      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 


DIFFERENCES    BETWEEN    GRAND    AND    PETIT    JURIES    IN 
ILLINOIS 


(Am.  Rep.,  pp.  152-153.) 


1.  Numbers. 

2.  Decisions. 

3.  Evidence. 

4.  Number         of 
Cases. 

5.  Kind  of  Cases 
Heard. 

6.  Sessions. 

7.  Term    of    Of- 
fice. 

8.  Oath     of    Of- 
fice. 


Grand  Jury 

23 

Indictments  by  ma- 
jority vote  of  twelve. 
One  side  only:  plain- 
tiff's. 

May     examine     any 
number. 
Criminal  only. 

Always  secret. 
Cook  County  usually 
one  month :  else- 
where, three. 
Grand  Jurors  must 
swear  never  to  re- 
veal what  goes  on  in 
their  sessions. 


Petit  Jury 
12  or  6. 
Verdict ;    unanimous. 

Both     sides :     plaintiff's 
and  defendant's. 
Tries   only   one   case. 

Civil   and   Criminal. 


In  open  Court. 
Indefinite :      until 
ends. 


case 


Petit  Jurors  swear,  "  to 
try  the  case  according 
to  the  law  and  evi- 
dence without  preju- 
dice or  favor." 


SEVEN    IMPORTANT    WRITS 

A.  "  The  writ  of  Habeas  Corpus  is  addressed  by  a  judge 
to  one  who  holds  another  in  alleged  unlawful  cus- 
tody, directing  him  to  produce  the  person  in  court 
and  show  why  he  detains  such  person." 

a.  Meaning  of  words :     "  Bring  you,"   or   "  produce 

you,"  the  body :  literally,   '*  that  you  may  bring 
the  body." 

b.  History  of  writ.     Gained  first  in  England,  reign  of 

Charles  II,  1679. 


JUDICIAL  TRIALS  AND  JURY  SYSTEM      123 

c.  May  be  suspended  in  time  of  war  only  by  order 
of  Congress.  If  Congress  so  directs,  President 
may  suspend  the  writ.  (See  action  of  Lincoln, 
1861,  in  Baltimore;  also  action  of  McKinley, 
1898,  Spanish-American  War.) 

B.  Injunction  is  an  order  from  a  judge,  or  court,  to  a  lower 

court,  individual,  or  corporation,  restraining  them 
from  doing  a  certain  thing.  Illustration:  Injunc- 
tion granted  against  strikers  to  prevent  injury  to 
property  of  corporation  where  strike  is  in  prog- 
ress. 

C.  Mandamus,  "  we  command,"  is  an  order  from  a  judge, 

or  court,  to  another  court,  individual,  or  corpora- 
tion, commanding  them  to  do  a  certain  thing.  Il- 
lustration: Writ  of  mandamus  could  be  obtained 
ordering  a  street-car  company  to  remove  tracks  ille- 
gally placed. 

D.  Writ  of  Quo  Warranto  ("by  what  authority?")  is  an 

order  from  a  judge  to  a  lower  court,  individual,  or 
corporation,  to  show  their  reasons  for  doing  a  cer- 
tain thing.  Illustration:  If  it  is  claimed  an  of- 
ficer has  not  the  legal  qualifications  required,  any 
tax-payer  could  bring  suit  under  the  writ  of  quo 
warranto  to  test  the  office-holder's  right  to  his 
office. 

E.  Writ  of  Certiorari,  or  "  to  be  certified,"  is  an  order 

from  a  higher  court  to  a  lower  court  to  send  up  cer- 
tain papers  required  by  the  higher  court.  This 
writ  prevents  the  lower  court  from  blocking  the  ac- 
tions on  an  appealed  case  in  a  higher  court  by  re- 
fusing to  send  up  important  documents  needed  in 
the  case. 


124     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

F.  Writ  of  Attachment  is  an  order  to  seize  property  in 

payment  of  a  debt. 

G.  Writ  of  Replevin  is  an  order  to  recover  goods  alleged 

to  be  wrongfully  taken  or  detained.  Security  must 
be  given  to  hold  the  goods  pending  a  suit  to  decide 
ownership;  if  this  goes  against  the  plaintiff,  he 
promises  to  restore  the  goods. 

These  writs  are  referred  to  so  often  that  even  a  layman 
needs  to  know  something  about  them,  although  the  defini- 
tions given  would  not  satisfy  a  lawyer.  The  Statutes  pro- 
vide when  and  how  they  may  be  obtained  and  the  services 
of  an  attorney  would  be  required  to  interpret  the  law  in 
such  a  matter.  The  last  two  writs  may  be  issued  by  a  jus- 
tice of  the  peace  and  a  police  magistrate,  but  the  first  five 
can  only  be  obtained  from  a  judge  and  a  court  of  record. 

PERTINENT  QUESTIONS 

1.  If  some  one  owed  you  $50  and  refused  to  pay,  in  what  court 
could  you  sue  him?  If  he  owed  you  $250?  If  the  suit  involved 
$1,000?     If  $5,000? 

2.  May  a  person's  acts  be  inquired  into  by  the  grand  jury  with- 
out his  knowing  anything  about  it?  May  grand  jurors  reveal  the 
proceedings  of  the  jury?     Why? 

3.  Are  lawyers  officers  of  the  court?  What  oath  does  each 
lawyer  take  when  admitted  to  the  bar? 

4.  What  is  meant  by  "  change  of  venue  "  ? 

5.  What  things  are  "  exempt  from  execution  "  in  Illinois  ? 

6.  Can  a  civil  suit  proceed  in  the  absence  of  the  defendant?  A 
criminal  suit? 

7.  Why  are  there  at  least  two  justices  in  every  town? 

8.  Are  they  county,  town,  or  city  officers? 

9.  Define  "  docket,"  "  summons,"  "  warrant,"  "  subpoena,'  '  ve- 
nire," "  costs,"  "  recognizance." 


JUDICIAL  TRIALS  AND  JURY  SYSTEM      125 

10.  What  are  the  similarities  in  a  criminal  and  civil  suit?  What 
are  the  principal  differences  in  procedure? 

11.  What  is  the  difference  between  a  warrant  and  summons? 
Sentence  and  judgment?  Plea  and  pleadings?  Arraignment  and 
opening  statement? 

12.  Debate  one  of  these  questions: 

A.  Resolved,  That  the  grand  jury  ought  to  be  abolished. 

B,  Resolved  J  That  capital  punishment  is  not  justifiable. 


CHAPTER  VIII 
THE  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS :     PHYSIOGRAPHY  AND  HISTORY 

Physical  Features.  Illinois,  the  "  Prairie  State,"  lies 
about  the  middle  of  the  great  central  plain  that  extends 
from  the  Arctic  to  the  Gulf  and  from  the  Alleghenies  to 
the  Rockies.  Its  highest  point,  Charles  Mound  in  Jo 
Daviess  County  on  the  Wisconsin  line,  is  about  1,300  feet 
above  sea  level;  the  lowest  point  at  Cairo  is  only  300  feet 
in  altitude. 

Latitude.  Illinois  lies  betw^een  parallels  37°  and 
42^  30'  north  latitude.  Three  hundred  and  eighty-five 
miles  in  length,  two  hundred  and  eighteen  miles  in 
width  are  its  extreme  dimensions.  Extend  these  east- 
ward on  a  map  of  the  United  States  and  observe  that 
our  southern  parallel  would  strike  Old  Point  Comfort  and 
Hampton  Roads,  Virginia,  and  our  northern  parallel  would 
touch  Boston.  If  Chicago  dwellers  could  imagine  Madison 
Street  extended  due  east  three  thousand  miles  it  would 
strike  the  Old  Roman  Forum,  and  yet  no  one  thinks  of 
Rome  and  Chicago  on  the  same  parallel  of  latitude. 

Area.  The  area  of  the  State  has  been  quite  accu- 
rately determined  as  56,650  square  miles  in  spite  of  the 
difficulties  in  surveying  two  such  irregular  boundary  lines 
as  the  erratic  curves  of  the  Mississippi  and  Ohio  rivers. 

Impress  these  facts  about  your  State  on  your  memory 
and  use  them  frequently  for  comparison  with  other  States 
and  foreign  countries. 

126 


THE  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS  127 

Surface.  Illinois  is  debtor  for  its  rich  soil  and  level 
surface  to  the  grinding,  carrying  power  of  the  great  ice 
sheet  of  the  glacial  epoch.  Only  two  small  areas  in  the 
State,  one  in  the  extreme  south  and  one  in  the  northwest, 
fail  to  reveal  this  glacial  action,  and  the  fertile  prairie  soil 
of  Illinois  is  the  product  of  the  crushing,  grinding  power 
of  this  slow-moving  ice-sheet  thousands  of  years  ago.  The 
rich,  level,  well-watered  surface  thus  produced  has  pre- 
destined Illinois  for  an  agricultural  State,  and  in  fulfilment 
of  its  mission  the  farmers  form  more  than  half  the  popu- 
lation. 

Waterways.  No  State  in  the  Union  has  a  more  mag- 
nificent system  of  waterways  than  Illinois.  The  Missis- 
sippi borders  the  State  for  550  miles  measured  by  its  curv- 
ing boundary  lirfe;  the  Ohio  and  Wabash  furnish  nearly 
300  miles  of  water  frontage  in  addition,  while  Lake  Mich- 
igan provides  60  miles  of  water  frontage  on  the  north- 
eastern shore.  We  still  make  little  use  of  these  natural 
waterways  in  comparison  with  foreign  countries  like  France 
and  Germany,  where  cities  and  provinces  have  spent  mil- 
lions on  the  development  of  inland  harbors,  quays,  wharves, 
and  freight-handling  facilities.  Illinois  is  just  waking  up 
to  the  value  of  her  river-  and  lake-heritage. 

Forests.  We  have  abundant  proof  that  Illinois  once 
possessed  fine  forests,  in  spite  of  her  present  reputation  for 
open  prairies.  Witness  the  many  saw-mills,  the  home- 
made furniture  in  the  pioneer  houses,  the  miles  of  rail 
fences  and  the  log  cabins  of  the  early  settlers.  An  exhibit 
of  v/oods  from  Illinois  displayed  at  the  World's  Fair 
in  1893  showed  seventy-five  species  of  native  trees.  The 
most  common  are  oak,  maple,  elm,  black  walnut,  hickory, 
ash,  birch,  chestnut,  and  cottonwood. 


128     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

Coal.  It  is  a  surprise  to  find  coal,  lead,  building 
stone,  petroleum,  various  commercial  clays,  and  even  iron, 
hidden  under  the  surface  of  a  prairie  State.  Illinois  ranks 
second  in  the  Union  in  the  production  of  bituminous  coal. 
Nearly  two-thirds  of  the  State  is  underlaid  with  an  excel- 
lent quality  of  soft  coal,  and  the  coal-mining  industry  is 
one  of  the  leading  occupations.  (Notice  the  large  number 
of  laws  to  regulate  the  mining  of  coal  and  to  protect  the 
miners.) 

Indians  of  Illinois.  The  most  important  group  of  In- 
dians was  the  confederacy  of  the  Illini,  made  up  of  various 
tribes  like  Michigamies,  Peorias,  and  Kaskaskias. 
Through  other  parts  of  the  State  roamed  the  Shawnees, 
Sacs  and  Foxes,  Pottowattamies,  and  Miamis,  who  have 
left  their  names  on  many  geographical  features  of  the  Mid- 
dle West. 

Indian  Relics.  Indian  mounds  are  scattered  over  the 
State.  Pottery,  cloth,  copper  ornaments,  have  been  found 
in  these  mounds.  In  Cook  County  along  the  lake  shore, 
from  Evanston  northward,  are  remains  of  various  "  chip- 
ping stations  "  that  show  there  were  famous  arrow-makers 
among  the  Pottowattamies.  These  piles  of  stone  chips 
along  the  lake  shore  mark  the  places  of  manufacture  and 
exchange  for  the  famous  arrow-heads  of  this  tribe,  and 
arrows  tipped  with  this  noted  product  of  the  Indian  artisan 
have  been  found  as  far  west  as  the  Dakotas,  showing  how 
widely  dispersed  was  the  trade  in  Illinois  wares  —  a  fore- 
shadowing of  the  commercial  greatness  of  the  State. 

Meaning  of  Illinois.  The  name  of  our  State  is  the 
best  proof  that  the  Illinois  Confederacy  had  the  most  to 
do  with  the  early  settlements  on  the  Illinois  and  the  Kas- 
kaskia  rivers.     "  Illini,"  "  real  men,"  answered  the  Indian 


THE  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS  129 

warriors,  when  Father  Hennepin  asked  who  the  tall,  straight 
braves  then  in  camp  were. 

History  of  Illinois.  As  far  as  we  have  any  record, 
two  Frenchmen,  in  1673,  a  fur  trader,  Louis  Joliet,  and  a 
Jesuit  priest,  Father  Marquette,  were  the  first  white  men 
of  European  blood  to  discover  and  explore  the  Illinois 
country.  Seven  years  later  came  LaSalle  and  his  faithful 
captain  and  friend  Tonty,  "  the  man  with  the  iron  hand," 
the  Indians  named  him.  The  two  forts  built  by  these 
soldiers  of  fortune,  Fort  Crevecoeur  at  Peoria  and  Fort 
St.  Louis  on  the  famous  Starved  Rock  near  Utica,  were 
the  first  attempts  to  take  military  possession  of  the  Illinois 
country.  The  name  Starved  Rock  was  given  nearly  a 
hundred  years  afj:er  Tonty's  day,  when  the  conquering  Iro- 
quois starved  out  the  Pottowattamies  and  the  Illinois,  about 
1769. 

Five  French  Villages.  Probably  as  early  as  1725  five 
permanent  French  villages,  Cahokia,  Kaskaskia,  New 
Chartres,  Prairie  du  Rocher,  and  St.  Phillipe,  had  been 
established  in  the  American  Bottom  along  the  Mississippi 
and  Kaskaskia  rivers.  The  Treaty  of  Paris  closing  the 
French  and  Indian  War  in  1763,  transferred  the  Illinois 
country  to  Great  Britain.  So  the  lilies  of  France  had  to 
yield  to  the  Union  Jack  of  England  in  the  great  Indian 
country  of  the  Middle  West.  Nearly  one-third  of  the 
French  inhabitants  left  their  villages,  taking  their  personal 
property  and  slaves  with  them. 

Colonel  George  Rogers  Clark.  The  capture  of  Kaskas- 
kia and  Vincennes  by  Colonel  Clark  and  his  little  band  of 
"long  knives"  after  their  terrible  winter  march  in  1778- 
1779  resulted  in  transferring  the  Illinois  country  to  its 
third  flag.     Colonel  Clark's  expedition  gave  the  American 


I30     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

envoys  in  Paris  at  the  close  of  the  Revolution  courage  to 
insist  that  since  United  States  soldiers  were  already  in  pos- 
session of  the  great  Northwest  Territory,  it  must  remain 
part  of  the  new  nation,  and  England  very  reluctantly  sur- 
rendered the  territory  between  the  Great  Lakes,  the  Mis- 
sissippi, and  the  Ohio. 

Ordinance  of  i/8/.  Almost  the  last  act  of  the  Congress 
under  the  Articles  of  Confederation  —  our  first,  and  un- 
successful, experiment  in  a  national  government  —  was  to 
organize  the  Northwest  Territory  under  the  provisions  of 
the  famous  Ordinance  of  1787,  which  provided  the  first 
permanent  government  the  Illinois  country  had  enjoyed 
since  Colonel  John  Todd,  the  county  lieutenant  commis- 
sioned by  Governor  Patrick  Henry  to  rule  the  "  county  of 
Illinois,  Virginia,"  had  gone  back  to  his  native  state  and 
left  Illinois  affairs  in  confusion.^ 

Illinois  under  Territorial  Government.  Illinois  has  been 
governed  as  a  part  of  three  separate  territories:  (i) 
Northwest  Territory,  1787- 1800;  (2)  Territory  of  Indi- 
ana—  1 800- 1 809  —  which  included  Illinois,  Michigan, 
Ohio,  and  Indiana  (the  capital  was  Vincennes) ;  (3)  Ter- 
ritory of  IlHnois — 1809-1818  —  including  Illinois,  Wis- 
consin, and  Northern  Michigan  (the  capital  was  Kaskas- 
kia).  The  admission  of  Ohio  (1803)  and  Indiana  (1816) 
into  the  Union  as  States;  the  desire  for  more  convenient 
land  offices  and  better  opportunity  to  secure  claims  in  the 
rich  government  lands  being  rapidly  thrown  open  for  set- 
tlement were  the  principal  reasons  the  United  States  or- 
ganized the  Indiana  and  Illinois  territories. 

Fort  Dearborn.  When  the  United  States  Government 
built  Fort  Dearborn  at  Chicago  in  the  winter  of  1803-04, 
1  Smith ;    Hist.  Ill,  ch.  xiv-xv. 


THE  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS  131 

its  blockhouses  and  stockade  marked  the  most  western  out- 
post of  the  Federal  Government,  and  its  building  in  the 
far  wilderness  was  ridiculed  in  Congress  as  a  piece  of 
national  folly.  The  massacre  at  Fort  Dearborn  in  181 2 
occurred  during  the  second  war  with  England,  and  was 
the  only  noteworthy  event  of  that  war  in  the  far  West  ex- 
cept Hull's  surrender  at  Detroit. 

Illinois  a  State.  Illinois  was  admitted  to  the  Union 
December  3,  181 8,  and  President  Monroe  issued  the  proc- 
lamation announcing  the  fact  to  the  people  of  the  United 
States. 

Northern  Boundary  of  Illinois.  In  the  famous  Ordi- 
nance of  1787,  the. States  to  be  made  from  the  Northwest 
Territory  were  to  be  divided  by  a  line  running  through  the 
south  end  of  Lake  Michigan.  While  the  Enabling  Act 
to  permit  Illinois  to  become  a  State  was  under  discussion 
in  Congress,  April,  181 8,  our  territorial  delegate.  Judge 
Nathaniel  Pope,  moved  to  amend  the  bill  by  striking  out 
the  section  about  boundaries  and  substituting  parallel  42° 
30'  for  the  northern  boundary.  Judge  Pope  took  advan- 
tage of  the  strong  feeling  in  Congress  over  the  slavery 
question  caused  by  the  debate  over  the  Missouri  Compro- 
mise. Fear  that  slavery  interests  might  finally  control  the 
new  State,  if  its  only  entrance  by  water  should  be  the  Ohio 
and  Mississippi  rivers,  led  Congress  to  adopt  the  amend- 
ment and  make  Illinois'  northern  boundary  line  parallel 
42°  30'. 

"The  result  was  to  give  Illinois  a  strip  of  country  sixty- 
one  miles  wide  extending  from  the  lake  to  the  Mississippi 
and  including  the  present  fourteen  northern  counties,  with 
a  combined  area  of  8,500  square  miles  of  fertile  country. 
It  includes  sixty-one  miles  of  lake-shore  line  and  the  sites 


132      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

of  the  cities  of  Chicago,  Evanston,  Waukegan,  Elgin, 
Aurora,  Rockport,  and  Galena."  ^ 

"  No  one  ever  rendered  Illinois  a  more  important  service 
in  Congress  than  did  Pope.  Had  the  northern  tier  of 
counties  included  within  the  sixty-one-mile  strip  become 
attached  to  Wisconsin,  Illinois  would  have  lacked  an  im- 
portant element  in  her  Legislature  at  the  outbreak  of  the 
Civil  War,  an  element  Wisconsin  did  not  require  because 
Union  sentiment  in  that  State  was  always  very  strong. 
The  commanding  position  occupied  by  Illinois  during  the 
Civil  War,  with  one  of  its  citizens  in  the  Presidential  chair, 
and  another  leading  the  armies  of  the  Union,  including 
Illinois'  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  citizen  soldiery, 
illustrates  the  sound  judgment  of  Pope." 

The  Constitutions  of  Illinois  —  Principal  Points: 

A.  Under  the  Constitution  of  1818: 

a.  Most  State  officers  elected  by  the  Legislature. 

b.  No  veto  power  for  the  governor. 

c.  Judges  chosen  for  life. 

d.  Council   of   Revision,   composed  of  governor   and 

judges,  revised  laws  passed  by  Legislature,  and 
were  thus  a  substitute  for  the  veto  power. 
Power  was  vested  in  the  Legislature. 

B.  Under  the  Constitution  of  1848: 

a.  Officers  elected  by  the  people.     Council  of  Revision 
abolished. 

2  Currey's  Hist.  Chicago,  Vol.  I,  pp.  117-119. 

Note. — "  By  the  Ordinance  of  1787,  Chicago  belongs  to  Wisconsin." — 
Hon.  J.  R,  Doolittle,  speech  at  opening  of  Sanitary  Canal,  January 
1900. 


Map  of  Illinois,  Showing  the  Congressional  Districts 


134     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

b.  Judges   elected    for  definite  terms    (nine  and  six 

years). 

c.  Power  of  Legislature  to  contract  State  debt  limited 

to  $50,000  unless  people  by  popular  vote  consented. 

d.  Sinking  fund  to  pay  bonds  was  created  by  a  two- 

mill  tax.  Power  of  Legislature  much  limited: 
due  to  a  $14,000,000  debt  created  by  former  Leg- 
islatures owing  to  their  craze  for  "  internal  im- 
provements," like  railroads  and  canals.  This 
debt  was  paid,  principal  and  interest,  about  1871 
—  the  year  of  the  Chicago  fire  —  and  citizens  of 
Illinois  have  a  right  to  much  pride  in  the  fact  that 
their  State  has  never  failed  to  pay  its  honest  debts. 

C.  Under  the  present  Constitution  of  1870.  (For  details, 
see  legislative,  executive,  and  judicial  departments 
of  the  State,  chapters  ix,  x,  and  xi.) 

Capitals  of  Illinois.  Kaskaskia  remained  the  capital  for 
two  years.  A  request  was  made  that  Congress  grant  four 
sections  of  land  —  2,560  acres  —  for  the  site  of  a  town 
to  remain  the  capital  of  Illinois  for  twenty  years.  Con- 
gress at  once  granted  the  land  and  the  second  capital  was 
built  near  the  headwaters  of  the  Kaskaskia  river,  and 
named  Vandalia. 

The  "  Long  Nine."  When  the  Legislature  met  in  1836 
the  State  was  much  excited  over  the  question  of  internal 
improvements.  A  bill  was  introduced  carrying  appropria- 
tions for  $10,200,000,  to  build  railroads,  public  roads,  and 
canals  throughout  the  State.  This  same  Legislature  was 
to  locate  a  new  capital,  so  much  log-rolling  was  the  result. 
The  *'  long  nine  "  from  Sangamon  County,  two  State  Sen- 
ators and  seven  representatives,   included  Abraham  Lin- 


THE  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS  135 

coin  among  the  delegation.  The  combined  height  of  the 
men  was  just  fifty- four  feet,  and  they  organized  a  club 
known  as  the  "  Long  Nine."  Through  the  shrewd  trading 
of  votes  on  internal  improvements  eagerly  desired,  the 
Sangamon  County  club  succeeded  in  landing  the  coveted 
prize,  and  Springfield,  then  a  village  of  1,500  people,  be- 
came the  capital. 

The  year  1837  ^^so  saw  the  failure  of  many  State  banks 
through  inability  to  redeem  the  wild-cat  currency  they  had 
issued  so  recklessly.  The  Love  joy  press  riots  at  Alton, 
caused  by  Mr.  Love  joy's  attempt  to  print  an  anti-slavery 
paper  in  Illinois,  resulted  in  the  murder  of  the  editor  and 
owner  of  the  paper  by  the  mob.     This  murder  occurred  in 

1837- 

Of  all  the  railroads,  canals,  and  public  roads  started 
through  the  immense  sums  voted  by  the  State  Legislature, 
not  one  was  a  success  except  the  Illinois  and  Michigan 
Canal,  which  was  opened  for  traffic  in  1848.  The  canal 
has  paid  for  itself  several  times  over  in  tolls  received  and 
turned  a  handsome  sum  into  the  State  treasury  as  well. 
Should  it  be  filled  up  now,  as  suggested,  and  the  land  thus 
made  sold,  the  State  would  be  the  richer  by  millions  of 
dollars.  Such  a  project  to  sell  the  canal  would  require  a 
referendum  vote  of  the  people. 

Slavery.  There  were  several  attempts  to  make  Illinois 
a  slave-holding  State.  The  most  exciting,  bitterly  con- 
tested campaign  over  the  question  was  fought  in  1824 
when  the  friends  of  freedom  gained  a  decided  victory  by 
defeating  a  proposition  for  a  new,  pro-slavery  constitution. 
Governor  Edward  Coles  was  the  leader  of  the  forces  of 
freedom  and  contributed  his  entire  salary  of  $4,000  to  the 
campaign  fund.     Governor  Coles  had  an  able  assistant  in 


136      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

Congressman  Daniel  P.  Cook,  who  stumped  the  southern 
part  of  the  State  in  behalf  of  freedom. 

The  Black  Hawk  War  in  1832  resulted  in  the  United 
States  Government  removing  all  Indians  from  Illinois  and 
giving  them  lands  west  of  the  Mississippi. 

The  Mormons  settled  at  Nauvoo,  and  after  six  years  of 
stormy  occupation  voluntarily  crossed  the  Mississippi  river 
and  moved  across  the  plains  to  Utah  Territory,  then  a  part 
of  Mexico. 

The  Lincoln-Douglas  debates ;  the  nomination  of  Lincoln 
(i860)  in  the  Lake  Street  Wigwam,  Chicago;  lUinois' 
honorable  record  in  the  Civil  War  for  numbers  of  troops 
sent  to  the  front  (250,000)  ;  four  famous  leaders  and  states- 
men, Lincoln,  Grant,  Logan,  Richard  Yates,  the  war  gov- 
ernor and  the  "  soldiers'  friend  " ;  the  noted  composer  of 
war  songs,  George  F.  Root,  and  the  wonderful  singers  of 
those  songs,  the  Lumbard  brothers,  who  sang  to  civilians 
and  soldiers  by  the  thousands  on  street  corners,  in  the 
camps,  at  great  mass  meetings  of  citizens;  the  Chicago  fire; 
the  Haymarket  riots ;  the  Columbian  Exposition  —  all 
these  topics  are  of  much  historical  importance  for  Illinois, 
but  do  not  come  within  the  range  of  the  title  of  this  book. 

Pullman  Strikes.  The  Pullman  railroad  strikes  of  1894 
involve  a  civic  question  and  need  mention  on  that  account. 
President  Grover  Cleveland  and  John  P.  Altgeld,  governor 
of  Illinois,  had  a  sharp  controversy  over  the  right  of  the 
President  of  the  United  States  to  send  Federal  troops  into 
a  State  when  the  governor  of  that  State  had  not  requested 
them.  President  Cleveland  ordered  the  regulars  from  Fort 
Sheridan  into  Chicago  to  protect  the  United  States  mails 
and  carry  out  the  orders  of  a  Federal  judge  whose  injunc- 
tions  against   the   riotous   strikers   had  not  been  obeyed. 


THE  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS  137 

The  governor  claimed  the  State  militia  could  handle  the 
situation.  But  quiet  was  not  restored  until  the  regulars 
had  marched  into  the  city  and  later  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  United  States  sustained  President  Cleveland's  action. 

General  References  for  History  of  Illinois. 

1.  G.  W..  Smith :     Students*  History  of  Illinois,  1907. 

2.  Mather:     The  Making  of  Illinois. 

3.  Greene :     Government  of  Illinois,  ch.  i,  ii,  iii. 

4.  Randall  Parrish:    Historic  Illinois. 

5.  Campbell :     Illinois  History  Stories.     (Helpful  for  older  pu- 

pils, although  intended  for  eighth  grade.) 

6.  J.  S.  Currey:    History  of  Chicago,   1912.     (Very  valuable 

for  entire  State.) 

7.  Osman:     Starved  Rock  (1911). 

8.  Catherwood:     Story  of  Tonti.     (Fiction;  to  be  used  with 

caution.) 

9.  Kinzie :     JVauban  —  Fort  Dearborn  Massacre. 

10.  Parrish:     When  Wilderness  was  King. 

11.  E.  P.  Roe:     Barriers  Burned  Away.   (Chicago  Fire.) 

12.  Churchill:     The  Crossing.     (Colonel  Clark's  expedition.) 

13.  Carr:     The  Illini. 

14.  Publications  Illinois  Historical  Society,  Springfield. 

(List  sent  on  application.  One  dollar  will  enroll  any 
school  on  their  mailing  list  and  furnish  all  their  reports 
and  monographs.) 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY 

References  : 

1.  Forman :  American  Republic,  pp.    135-144. 

2.  Forman  :     Advanced  Civics,  pp.  162-167. 

3.  Garner  :  Government  in  United  States,  Supplement,  1915,  pp.  4-^7. 

4.  Greene:  Government  of  Illinois,  pp.  76-85. 

The  Legislature  of  Illinois  is  called  the  General  Assent^ 
bly  and  meets  in  Springfield  in  the  capitol  biennially,  the 
first  Wednesday  after  the  first  Monday  in  January  of  the 
odd  years.  The  governor  may  call  an  extra  session  any 
time.  The  General  Assembly  is  bicameral,  having  a  Senate 
of  fifty-one  members  and  a  House  of  Representatives  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty-three  members  —  a  Legislature  of 
two  hundred  and  four. 

Apportionment.  The  legislators  are  apportioned 
among  the  fifty-one  senatorial  districts.  One  senator  and 
three  representatives  are  elected  from  each  district  in  No- 
vember of  the  even  years.  Senators  from  the  even-num- 
bered districts  are  elected  at  one  November  election  and 
the  senators  from  the  odd  numbered  districts  at  the  next 
biennial  election.  The  entire  one  hundred  and  fifty-three 
representatives  are  elected  every  two  years.  In  conse- 
quence, the  house  must  reorganize  every  regular  session. 

The  senatorial  districts  are  determined  by  population, 
and  the  Legislature  reapportions  the  State  every  ten  years 
according  to  the  new  Federal  census.  ( i )     Cook  County  has 

138 


THE  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY  139 

nineteen  senatorial  districts  and  seventy-six  votes  in  the 
General  Assembly.  Minority  representation,  or  "cumula- 
tive voting,"  is  allowed  only  in  electing  State  representa- 
tives. 

Minority  Representation.  Minority  representation 
is  the  unique  feature  in  the  Constitution  of  1870.  Every 
voter  has  three  votes  for  State  representative.'^  He  may 
divide  them  as  he  likes  :  one  to  each  of  three ;  one  and  a  half 
to  each  of  two  men;  or  he  may  "  plump  "  his  three  votes 
on  one  man,  thus  assuring  his  election.  This  gives  repre- 
sentation to  a  party  in  the  minority  and  when  adopted  was 
hailed  as  a  notable  reform.  After  forty  years'  service, 
it  works  out  in  this  way :  The  leaders  of  the  two  older 
parties  agree  to  nominate  two  candidates,  or  one,  in  each 
district,  according  to  their  relative  strength  in  each  of  the 
fifty-one  senatorial  districts.  Then  by  this  ingenious  de- 
vice of  the  voter  massing  his  three  votes  on  their  one  candi- 
date, the  party  in  the  minority  throughout  the  State  is  sure 
of  electing  one-third  the  representatives.  The  situation  is 
somewhat  complicated  by  the  entrance  of  a  third  party :  yet 
three  large  parties  instead  of  two  only  make  it  easier  for 
a  small  group  of  voters  by  "plumping"  to  defeat  the 
divided  strength  of  their  enemies  and  elect  their  candidate, 
who  is  often  entirely  unfit  to  represent  the  district.     Mi- 

1  For  a  few  years  this  method  of  "cumulative  voting"  was  tried  in 
electing  trustees  of  sanitary,  or  drainage,  districts,  in  the  State.  But 
that  section  of  the  Drainage  Act  was  soon  repealed,  and  now  minority 
representation  is  limited  to  State  representatives,  (Rev.  Stat.,  ch. 
xhi,  sec.  217.)  There  is  provision,  however,  for  cities  to  use  minority 
representation  in  the  council  by  electing  three  aldermen  from  a  ward 
and  applying  cumulative  voting,  if  any  city  chooses  to  adopt  this 
method.  But  the  law  seems  to  be  a  dead  letter  at  present.  (Rev.  Stat., 
ch.  xxiv,  sees.  53-54.    In  force  July,  191 1.) 


I40     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

nority  representation  in  its  present  form  ought  to  be  cast 
out  of  the  constitution  and  the  unvarying  principle,  "  one 
man,  one  vote,"  substituted. 

Qualifications.  Both  senators  and  representatives 
must  be  citizens  of  the  United  States  and  have  lived  in  the 
State  five  years  and  in  their  districts  two  years  before  elec- 
tion; but  senators  must  be  twenty-five  years  old,  while 
representatives  are  only  required  to  be  twenty-one.  Sen- 
ators' term  is  four  years  and  representatives'  two.  Each 
is  eligible  for  reelection. 

Disqualifications.  No  one  can  legally  be  a  mem- 
ber of  either  house  if  he  has  ever  been  convicted  of  bribery, 
perjury,  or  any  other  crime ;  neither  is  he  eligible  if,  having 
held  public  funds,  he  has  failed  satisfactorily  to  account 
for  them.  He  can. not  hold  any  other  profitable  State  or 
Federal  office  at  the  same  time  he  is  a  member  of  the  Legis- 
lature. 

Each  member,  before  he  can  take  his  seat,  must  "  de- 
clare on  oath  that  he  has  not  given  any  bribe  to  secure  his 
election  and  that  he  will  accept  no  bribe  during  his  term 
of  office."  (Constit,  Art.  IV,  sec  5.)  Any  member  who 
refuses  to  take  this  oath,  or  is  guilty  of  perjury  in  taking 
it,  thereby  forfeits  his  seat.  All  such  questions  as  the 
right  of  any  member  to  his  seat  are  decided  by  each  house 
for  its  own  members.  It  takes  a  two-thirds  vote  to  expel 
a  member.  The  expulsion  of  Frank  D.  Comerford,  second 
senatorial  district,  by  the  House  of  Representatives,  in 
1905,  illustrates  this  point.  Comerford  charged  wholesale 
corruption  in  the  Legislature  of  1905  in  a  speech  made  in 
Chicago,  and  given  wide  publicity  through  the  daily  press. 
A  special  committee  in  the  House  investigated  the  charges 
and  recommended  Comerford  be  expelled.     This  was  done 


THE  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY  141 

in  February  by  a  vote  of  121  yeas  to  13  nays,  being  more 
than  the  required  two-thirds  vote.  He  was  reelected  by 
his  district  at  a  special  election  called  by  the  governor  April 
4,  1905,  was  sworn  in  a  second  time  and  served  out  his 
term.      (See  Journal  House  of  Representatives  for  1905.) 

By  all  these  devices  Illinois  has  tried  to  keep  her  Legis- 
lature pure;  but  she  has  not  succeeded  very  well,  as  the 
General  Assembly  has  not  had  a  good  reputation  for  most 
sessions.  The  members,  however,  represent  the  will  of 
the  active  voters  in  their  districts  —  the  stay-at-home  voter 
does  not  count  —  and  therefore  the  Legislature  is  fully 
up  to  the  average  intelligence  and  morality  of  the  voters 
in  the  State. 

Salary.  Senators  and  representatives  are  paid  $3,500 
per  session  (2)  and  ten  cents  mileage  for  necessary  travel  in 
going  and  returning  from  Springfield;  also  an  allowance 
of  $50  for  newspapers  and  stationery.  Do  they  have  the 
"  franking  privilege  "  like  members  of  Congress? 

Organization.  The  lieutenant-governor  is  president 
ex-officio  of  the  Senate,  but  has  no  vote  except  in  case  of 
a  tie.  The  senators  choose  one  of  their  number  for  presi- 
dent pro  tem  to  preside  in  the  absence  of  the  lieutenant- 
governor.  The  speaker  is  chosen  by  the  representatives 
from  their  own  number.  Where  the  majority  party  is 
split  into  factions,  or  there  is  a  third  party  in  the  House, 
as  there  has  been  most  sessions  since  1870,  prohibitionists, 
socialists,  labor  party  men,  or  progressives,  the  struggle  to 
elect  a  speaker  may  consume  weeks.  The  regular  session 
of  the  48th  General  Assembly  did  not  organize  for  three 
weeks  (from  January  8  to  29,  191 3)  (3),  when  the  speaker- 
ship deadlock  was  broken  by  the  election  of  William  Mc- 
Kinley   (Dem.),   from  Lake  View,   Chicago,  as  speaker. 


142      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

The  unusual  selection  of  two  United  States  senators  to 
succeed  Shelby  M.  CuUom,  whose  term  expired  March  4, 
19 1 3,  and  William  Lorimer,  whose  seat  had  been  declared 
vacant  by  the  United  States  Senate,  was  the  cause  of  the 
deadlock.  The  election  of  J.  Hamilton  Lewis  (Dem.)  for 
the  six-year  term  and  Lawrence  Y.  Sherman  for  the  short 
two-year  term,  March  26,  through  the  Democratic-Repub- 
lican combination,  broke  a  second  lengthy  deadlock.  (4) 
These  are  the  last  two  senators  to  be  elected  by  the  General 
Assembly.     (See  Amendment  XVII,  U.  S.  Con.) 

Powers  of  the  Speaker.  The  speaker  of  the  House 
has  large  power  through  his  appointment  of  all  com- 
mittees, including  the  naming  of  the  chairmen.  He  also 
has  the  power  of  recognizing  or  ignoring  a  member  who 
desires  to  address  the  House,  according  as  he  favors  or 
disapproves  of  his  motion.  This  is  known  as  the  power 
of  recognition.  He  declares  the  result  of  every  vote,  and 
unless  the  yeas  and  nays  are  recorded  in  a  roll  call,  the 
speaker  may  announce  a  motion  carried  which  his  party 
favors,  when  a  roll  call  would  show  it  defeated.  This  is 
"  gavel  rule/'  because  the  fall  of  the  speaker's  gavel  as  he 
announces  the  vote,  legally  closes  it,  -and  has  often  been 
used  to  "  railroad  through  "  bad  bills  and  defeat  good  ones. 
If  the  lieutenant-governor  and  the  president  of  the  senate 
are  unable  to  act  as  governor,  the  speaker  assumes  the 
office  for  the  remainder  of  the  term. 

Employees.  Each  house  chooses  clerks,  postmas- 
ters, sergeants-at-arms,  doorkeepers,  and  a  horde  of  lesser 
employees,  such  as  watchmen,  janitors,  messengers,  stenog- 
raphers, secretaries  to  the  members,  "  clock-winders,  and 
transom-openers,"  the  number  chosen  depending  very 
largely  on  the  size  of  the   throng  of  hungry  politicians 


THE  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY  143 

clamoring  for  jobs  as  rewards  for  political  services  ren- 
dered at  the  previous  November  election.  The  corridors  of 
the  capitol  are  crowded  with  this  army  of  needless  em- 
ployees. (5) 

Sessions.  The  Illinois  General  Assembly  has  the  very 
bad  habit  of  generally  meeting  only  on  Tuesday,  Wednes- 
day, and  Thursday  each  week,  and  practically  little  work 
is  done  before  the  middle  of  April.  They  usually  adjourn 
early  in  June,  and  thus  a  session  of  five  months  means  only 
six  weeks  or  two  months  of  actual  law-making.  In  the 
meantime  the  State  is  paying  all  legislative  employees  for 
full-time  work.  The  bad  custom  of  permitting  members 
of  the  Legislature  to  accept  railroad  passes  was  largely  to 
blame  for  these  short  weekly  sessions,  but  an  anti-pass  bill 
was  killed  in  the  legislature  many  times.  The  present  rul- 
ing is  an  unforeseen  result  of  the  Public  Utilities  law  passed 
in  1913.  (6) 

Committees.  The  real  work  of  the  two  houses  is 
done  in  standing  committees,  numbering  from  three  to 
twenty-five  members.  Each  is  assigned  to  one  or  more 
committees.  In  the  Senate  these  committees  are  elected 
after  being  nominated  in  party  caucuses.  A  party-caucus  is 
a  meeting,  usually  secret,  of  the  members  of  a  political  party 
in  House  or  Senate,  to  determine  committee  membership,  or 
how  the  party  members  shall  vote  on  important  bills.  If  the 
party  leaders  are  able  men,  they  hold  their  party  members 
rigorously  to  the  policy  agreed  on  in  the  caucus. 

In  the  House  the  speaker  names  the  members  of  the 
committees.  If  he  is  slow  in  announcing  these  committees, 
as  in  the  48th  Assembly,  19 13  (not  all  selected  until  the 
last  of  April),  the  House  falls  below  the  Senate  in  its  work. 

The  principal  committees  are  those  on  appropriations, 
judiciary,  elections,  agriculture,  education,  railroads,  rev- 


144     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

enue,  waterways,  charitable  and  reformatory  Institutions. 
The  Senate  has  about  forty  standing  committees;  the 
House,  about  seventy. 

Rules  of  Procedure.  Each  house  adopts  its  own 
rules  of  procedure.  The  rules  of  the  House  have  been  in 
use  many  years  and  are  well  adapted  to  allow  the  party  in 
the  majority  to  ride  rough-shod  over  the  minority.  A 
small  beginning  was  made  in  the  Legislature  of  191 3  to 
alter  these  ancient  rules;  but  any  genuine  reform  was  de- 
feated by  the  house  machines.  (7)  It  takes  an  actual  ma- 
jority of  all  the  members  elected  in  either  house  to  pass  a 
bill  on  its  final,  or  third  reading:  seventy-seven  votes  in  the 
House  and  twenty-six  in  the  Senate  is  the  constitutional 
number. 

Work  of  Legislature.  The  following  are  the  prin- 
cipal things  the  General  Assembly  may  do  through  its  law- 
making power,  although  the  number  of  laws  passed  is  legion : 

1.  Raise  and  collect  a  revenue  by  direct  taxation. 

2.  Raise  and  maintain  a  militia. 

3.  Create  and  maintain  a  public-school  system. 

4.  Provide  for  higher  education,  as  a  State  university, 
normal  and  high  schools. 

5.  Care  for  defectives,  as  the  insane,  blind,  deaf  and 
dumb,  paupers,  and  epileptics. 

6.  Detect  and  punish  crime. 

7.  Maintain  a  system  of  public  roads. 

8.  Charter  corporations,  as  railroads,  banks,  insurance 
companies,  clubs,  etc. 

9.  Create  and  control  local  governments,  as  counties, 
cities,  villages,  school  districts,  towns,  sanitary  and  drain- 
age districts. 


THE  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY  145 

10.  Determine  conditions  of  the  suffrage  and  make  all 
election  laws. 

How  a  Bill  Becomes  a  Law.  Bills  may  originate 
in  either  house,  and  any  member  of  the  General  Assembly 
may  introduce  a  bill.  This  is  done  when  the  roll  is  called 
on  certain  days  early  in  the  session  and  members  respond 
by  reading  their  bills  by  title.  For  most  bills  the  process 
of  being  turned  into  law  resembles  an  obstacle,  or  "  hurdle 
race."  The  first  difficulty  encountered  is  the  committee  to 
which  it  is  referred  by  the  speaker,  if  introduced  in  the 
House.  When  a  bill  is  introduced  in  the  Senate,  the  sen- 
ator responsible  usually  requests  that  it  be  referred  to  a 
certain  committee,  of  course  one  he  thinks  favorable  to  his 
bill.  The  committee  has  power  to  cut  the  bill  to  pieces,  or 
amend  it,  so  that  even  the  author  would  not  recognize  his 
own  bill.  If  hostile  to  the  bill,  the  committee  may  "  pigeon- 
hole "  it,  "  lay  it  on  the  table,"  and  fail  to  report  it  out 
of  committee.  However,  if  the  member  introducing  it  is 
actually  interested  in  its  passage,  he  may,  by  his  persistent 
inquiries  about  the  bill,  make  the  chairman  of  the  commit- 
tee "  holding  it  up  "  so  uncomfortable  that  the  committee 
may  report  it  out  "  without  any  recommendation," — 
equivalent  to  disapproval  of  the  bill  —  or  with  the  "  recom- 
mendation that  it  do  not  pass'' — a  far  worse  fate  for  the 
bill.  The  committees  are  justly  named  "  legislative  grave- 
yards." 

The  time  allowed  for  debate  on  a  bill  is  determined  by 
the  days  left  in  the  session  and  the  number  of  bills  to  be 
considered.  In  the  hurried  closing  hours  of  the  last  day, 
generally  a  day-and-night  session,  scores  of  bills,  advanced 
to  third  reading,  are  rushed  through  without  debate,  and 


146     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

when  many  members  have  no  idea  what  they  are  voting 
on.  Hundreds  of  good  bills  also  fail  through  lack  of  time 
to  vote  on  them  in  the  crowded  closing  session.  The  final 
vote  is  always  by  roll  call,  when  the  "  ayes  and  nays  "  are 
recorded  in  the  journal.  This  gives  excellent  opportunity 
for  the  voters  in  each  district  to  learn  how  their  members 
voted  on  important  bills. 

The  Legislative  Voters'  League  issues  very  interesting 
bulletins  each  week  of  the  session  of  the  General  Assembly. 
These  bulletins  report  what  is  done  and  how  each  member 
votes,  or  "  passes,"  at  every  roll-call.  They  are  the  best 
way  to  keep  track  of  your  State  representatives  and  senator. 
Any  one  can  get  the  bulletin  by  addressing  the  secretary 
of  the  League  at  Chicago,  or  Springfield,  and  enclosing 
postage.  For  a  humorous  account  of  the  sessions  of  the 
48th  General  Assembly  (1913),  see  the  letters  of  George 
Fitch,  member  from  Peoria,  in  the  Chicago  Tribune, 
Sunday  edition,  January  to  June,  191 3.  These  letters  are 
well  worth  reading  as  the  first  impressions  of  a  new  member 
who  went  to  the  Legislature  anxious  to  serve  his  district 
well,  but  found  himself  helpless  under  the  rules  of  pro- 
cedure under  which  the  House  works. 

Some  members  dislike  the  publicity  of  a  roll-call  so  much 
they  refuse  to  vote  rather  than  be  recorded  on  certain  bills. 
What  of  the  courage,  or  convictions,  of  such  a  dodging 
legislator  ? 

All  bills  must  be  read  on  three  different  days;  on  two 
days  usually  by  title  only,  but  the  title  of  a  bill  must  tell 
plainly  what  it  is  about.  Amendments  can  not  be  added 
after  a  second  reading,  unless  by  unanimous  consent  of  the 
members  present,  or  by  sending  it  back  to  the  committee. 
The  bill  is  ordered  printed  after  second  reading  with  the 


THE  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY  147 

amendments,  and  a  copy  is  placed  on  the  desk  of  each  mem- 
ber. 

Lobbying,  or  the  efforts  of  interested  persons  not  legis- 
lators, on  behalf  of  a  bill,  is  a  common  practice.  Many 
powerful  corporations  maintain  paid  lobbyists  at  Spring- 
field through  every  session  to  work  for  or  against  certain 
bills.  Log-rolling,  or  the  exchange  of  votes  between  legis- 
lators, is  another  common  practice.  "  I  will  vote  for  your 
bill  if  you  will  vote  for  mine." 

The  Enacting  Clause.  One  way  the  enemies  of 
a  bill  may  kill  it  is  to  "  move  to  strike  out  the  enacting 
clause."  If  this  motion  prevails,  the  bill  is  doomed.  No 
bill  can  become  law  unless  it  is  prefaced  by  the  words, 
"  Be  it  enacted  by  the  People  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  rep- 
resented in  the  General  Assembly." 

The  Veto  Power.  After  passing  both  houses  and 
being  signed  by  both  presiding  officers,  the  bill  is  sent  to 
the  governor.  He  may  keep  it  ten  days,  holidays  and  Sun- 
days excepted.  If  he  fails  to  return  it  at  the  end  of  this 
period,  it  becomes  a  law  without  his  signature.  If  he  ap- 
proves the  bill  he  signs  it ;  the  secretary  of  State  affixes  the 
great  seal  of  Illinois,  and  attends  to  its  publication.  The 
bill  is  now  a  law,  and  goes  into  effect  July  i,  unless  some 
emergency  exists  and  the  law  goes  into  effect  at  once. 
Emergency  matters  must  have  a  two-thirds  vote  for  im- 
mediate enforcement.     (Constit.,  Art.  IV.  sec.  13.) 

But  should  the  governor  disapprove,  he  returns  the  bill, 
with  his  objections,  to  the  house  where  it  started;  it  must 
then  receive  a  two-thirds  vote  in  each  house  to  pass  it  over 
the  veto  and  make  the  bill  law  without  the  governor's  sig- 
nature. Should  the  General  Assembly  have  adjourned, 
then  the  governor  files  the  bill  with  his  objections  with  the 


148      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

secretary  of  State  and  the  bill  fails  to  become  law,  at  least 
until  the  next  session  of  the  Legislature. 

The  Selective  Veto.  The  governor  of  Illinois  may  veto 
any  item  in  an  appropriation  bill  and  allow  the  rest  of  the 
bill  to  become  law.  This  is  a  valuable  aid  in  preventing 
extravagant  or  unwise  items  slipping  into  an  appropriation 
bill.  All  appropriation  bills  are  required  to  state  the 
amount  of  each  item  and  its  purpose.  This  is  to  protect 
the  governor's  selective  veto  and  to  guard  against  extrava- 
gant expenditure. 

Legislature  of  ipij.  A  quotation  from  "  Bulletin  No. 
21,  Legislative  Voters'  League  of  the  State  of  Illinois,"  the 
last  issue  for  the  48th  General  Assembly,  follows :  "  Ad- 
journment of  the  48th  General  Assembly,  the  most  remark- 
able session  of  a  State  Legislature  in  the  history  of  Illinois, 
in  many  respects,  came  at  five  o'clock  this  morning  —  June 
21  — when  Speaker  McKinley  let  fall  the  House  gavel  for 
the  last  time.  Fifty  Senate  bills  (passed  by  the  Senate) 
ready  for  final  action  were  swept  into  the  discard.  Of  the 
1,617  bills  introduced  in  both  houses  only  240  ran  the  legis- 
lative gauntlet  and  reached  the  governor's  desk  for  signa- 
ture. The  final  week  of  the  State's  longest  legislative  ses- 
sion—  from  January  8  to  June  21  — was  one  of  feverish 
activity.  From  morning  to  midnight  each  day  of  this  final 
week,  members  fought  to  have  advanced  and  passed  the  hun- 
dreds of  bills  that  had  piled  up  during  the  months  of  inac- 
tivity. Most  of  them  failed,  and  during  the  last  three  days, 
hundreds  of  measures,  important  and  unimportant  alike, 
were  lost.  The  most  important  measures  which  passed 
both  houses  include:  Woman's  Suffrage,  State  Public 
Utilities  Commission,  Municipal  Ownership  of  Public  Util- 
ities,   Consolidation   State   Fish   and   Game  Departments, 


THE  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY  149 

State  Epileptic  Colony  Appropriation,  Good  Roads,  Pri- 
mary Law  Amendments,  Workmen's  Compensation  Act, 
Legislative  Reference  Bureau,  Chicago  Municipal  Court 
Act,  Chicago  Outer  Harbor. 

"  Members  declined  to  enact  an  anti-railroad  pass  law  un- 
less it  had  for  a  companion  measure  a  salary  boost  for 
legislators  (from  $2,000  to  $3,500).  The  senate  refused 
to  concur  in  what  some  of  the  members  styled  a  legislative 
bribery  proceeding,  and  killed  the  salary  raise  bill  after 
it  had  passed  the  bill  forbidding  passes.  The  House 
promptly  responded  by  sending  the  anti-pass  bill  to  legis- 
lative limbo."  (8) 

One  senator  remarked,  *'  This  Assembly  ought  to  do  its 
work  in  ninety  days!  If  the  Legislature  would  adjourn 
for  five  years,  the  State  would  be  better  off."  This  quota- 
tion illustrates  from  the  proceedings  in  a  recent  session  of 
the  Legislature  several  points  mentioned  in  this  chapter. 
Practical,  recent  illustrations  of  actual  government  in  Illi- 
nois afe  always  desirable.  (9) 

Comparison  of  Congress  and   General  Assembly  of  Illinois. 
[Fill  out  this  outline.] 
Greneral  Assembly.  Congress. 


I.  Legal  Name. 

2.  T  i  m  e      and 

Place  of  Meet- 

ing. 

A. 

Senate. 

B. 

House. 

3.  Composition. 
A. 

Senators. 

B. 
4.  Qualifica- 

Representatives. 

tions. 


I50     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

General  Assembly.  Congress. 

A.  Senator, 

B,  Representative. 

5.  Term    of    Ofi- 
fice. 

6.  Time  of  Elec- 
tion. 

7.  Presiding    Of- 
ficer. 

8.  Sole    Powers. 

9.  Salary. 

PERTINENT  QUESTIONS 

1.  What  is  the  organization  in  Illinois  for  studying  the  records 
of  members  of  the  General  Assembly  and  for  securing  the  elec- 
tion of  honest,  efficient  legislators? 

2.  Why  are  the  November  legislative  elections  of  such  impor- 
tance to  every  citizen  of  Illinois? 

3.  Why  does  our  General  Assembly  fail  to  pass  laws  demanded 
by  the  people? 

4.  Is  there  a  legislative  bureau  in  Illinois  to  collect  information 
for  the  benefit  of  members,  or  to  assist  them  in  the  preparation 
of  bills? 

5.  How  is  a  bill  introduced  in  both  houses? 

6.  Why  is  minority  representation  a  bad  thing? 

7.  What  is  the  penalty  for  accepting  a  bribe? 

8.  What  are  the  arguments  against  increasing  the  salary  of  an 
Illinois  legislator? 

9.  Give  all  possible  ways  a  bill  may  fail. 

10.  Give  the  quickest  method  by  which  it  may  pass. 

11.  How  can  the  speaker  help  pass  a  bad  bill? 

12.  Why  are  committees  called  "legislative  graveyards"? 

13.  What  is  a  senatorial  district?     How  many  has  Illinois? 

14.  What  is  "gavel  rule"?     Lobbying?     Log-rolling? 

15.  What  is  "railroading"  a  bill? 


CHAPTER  X 
EXECUTIVE 

References  : 

1.  State  Constitution,  Art.  v. 

2.  Forman:    American  Republic,  ch.  xx;  Adv.  Civics,  ch.  xxiii. 

3.  Greene :     Government  of  Illinois,  pp.  85-90. 

4.  Garner:     Government  in  the  United  States,  ch.  v;   Supplement, 

Government  Illinois,  1915,  pp.  17-34. 

5.  Boynton  and  Upton :    School  Civics,  Supplement,  pp.  40-51. 

6.  Guitteau :     Government  and  Politics  in  United  States,  ch.  x. 

Elected  Executives  of  the  State.  The  State  constitu- 
tion declares  (Art  V,  sec.  i) :  "  The  executive  department 
shall  consist  of  a  governoVj  lieutenant-governor,  secretary 
of  state,  auditor  of  public  accounts,  treasurer,  superintend- 
ent of  public  instruction,  and  attorney  general,  who  shall 
each,  with  the  exception  of  the  treasurer,  hold  his  office 
for  the  term  of  four  years  from  the  second  Monday  in 
January  next  after  his  election,  and  until  his  successor  is 
elected  and  qualified.  They  shall,  except  the  lieutenant- 
governor,  reside  at  the  seat  of  the  government  during  their 
term  of  office,  and  keep  the  public  records,  books,  and  papers 
there,  and  shall  perform  such  duties  as  shall  be  prescribed 
by  law."  In  many  respects  Illinois'  executive  department 
is  "  hydra-headed,"  and  therefore  lacks  unity  of  action. 
Decentralized  power  —  away  from  the  center  —  is  a  favor- 
ite principle  of  American  government,  and  Illinois  only  fol- 
lows historic  precedent  in  her  executive  department. 

151 


152     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

The  Governor  is  the  chief  executive  officer  in  Illinois. 
He  must  be  at  least  thirty  years  of  age,  and  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States  and  Illinois  for  the  five  years  next  preceding 
his  election.  He  is  chosen  at  the  general  election  the  first 
Tuesday  after  the  first  Monday  in  November  of  the  Presi- 
dential election  years.  His  term  begins  the  second  Monday 
in  January  following  his  election,  provided  the  State  legis- 
lature has  organized  by  choosing  officers  so  that  in  joint 
session  it  can  canvass  the  votes  cast  for  the  executive  officers 
and  declare  them  "  duly  elected."  There  was  a  "  dead- 
lock "  in  the  House  in  the  48th  General  Assembly  over  the 
election  of  a  speaker,  lasting  three  weeks,  (i)  In  conse- 
quence, Governor  Charles  S.  Deneen  and  the  other  execu- 
tive officers  had  their  terms  prolonged  because  their  Demo- 
cratic successors  could  not  be  declared  "  duly  elected,"  nor 
be  qualified  for  office  by  giving  their  bonds  and  taking  the 
oath  required  of  each  State  officer. 

The  governor's  salary  is  fixed  by  law  and  is  now  $12,000 
and  the  executive  mansion  at  Springfield. 

His  Legislative  Powers  are,  (a)  to  send  a  message  to  the 
General  Assembly  at  the  beginning  of  each  session;  (b)  to 
sign  or  veto  bills;  ^  (c)  to  call  the  Assembly  in  special  or 
extraordinary  session  whenever,  in  his  judgment,  the  oc- 
casion requires ;  and  to  adjourn  the  Assembly  to  such  a  time 
as  he  thinks  proper,  if  the  houses  disagree  over  the  date, 
provided  it  is  not  beyond  the  first  day  of  the  next  regular 
session. 

Power  of  Appointment.  With  the  consent  of  the  Senate, 
the  governor  may  appoint  all  officers  whose  appointment  or 
election  is  not  otherwise  provided  for.     The  Legislature  is 

^For  description  of  his  veto  power,  see  pp.   147-148   (How  a  Bill 
Becomes  a  Law). 


EXECUTIVE  153 

strictly  forbidden  by  the  constitution  to  elect  or  appoint  any 
such  officer,  so  that  it  may  not  usurp  the  appointing  power 
of  the  governor. 

The  number  of  positions,  great  and  small,  filled  by  ap- 
pointment of  the  governor,   is  about  five  hundred.     The 
more  important  ones  are:     Offices  in  the   State  militia; 
factory,  grain,  and  mine-inspectors;  members  of  the  geo- 
logical  survey,   Lincoln  Park  and  West  Park  Boards  in 
Chicago;  the  fish  commission.  State  charities  commission, 
and  the  Illinois  park  commission;  the  State  highway  de- 
partment, the  State  board  of  administration  to  care  for 
the    twenty    charitable    institutions;    members    of    various 
examining  boards  for  trades,  business,  or  professions  li- 
censed, or  regulated,  by  the  State,  in  order  to  protect  the 
lives,  health,  or  property  of  the  citizens,  as  dentists,  pharma- 
cists, architects,  doctors  (who  are  examined  by  the  State 
board  of  health),  barbers,  plumbers,  and  a  State  superin- 
tendent of  insurance;  trustees   for  the  penal  institutions 
and  for  the  five  normal  schools ;  three  members  of  the  board 
of  pardons;  commissioners  of  labor;  five  members  State 
public  utilities  commission ;  State  board  of  arbitration  to 
try  to  prevent  strikes  by  arbitrating  the  differences  at  issue 
through   State   aid;  three  members   of  the   State  mining 
board ;  six  members  of  the  mine  rescue  station  commission, 
created  immediately  following  the  terrible  Cherry  disaster 
and  now  maintaining  three  rescue  stations  and  three  mine 
rescue  cars  in  the  mining  regions  of  the  State;  food  and 
game  commissioners;  four  superintendents  of  the  free  em- 
ployment agencies.     This  long  list  is  only  a  partial  one.  (2) 
Each  session  of  the  Legislature  creates  new  boards  and 
commissions  that  increase  the  governor's  appointing  power. 
Keep  up  with  these  through  the  Session  Laws  published 


154     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

usually   by    the    middle    of    August    of    every    odd    year. 

Power  of  Removal.  The  governor  himself  can  be  re- 
moved only  by  impeachment.  Charges  are  preferred 
through  a  majority  vote  in  the  House  of  Representatives 
and  the  impeachment  is  tried  by  the  Senate  acting  as  a 
court  of  justice.  Two-thirds  of  the  senators  must  con- 
cur to  convict.  No  governor  of  IlHnois  has  ever  been 
impeached.  The  impeachment  and  removal  from  office  of 
Governor  Sulzer  of  New  York,  October  19 13,  has  given 
recent  illustration  of  the  danger  of  this  method  of  trial 
when  controlled  by  the  political  enemies  of  the  execu- 
tive. 

Pardoning  Power,  The  governor  may  grant  reprieves, 
or  delayed  sentences,  commuted  or  lessened  sentences,  and 
full  pardons  for  all  offenses  committed  against  the  State; 
but  he  can  not  grant  a  pardon  before  the  conviction  of  the 
offender.  He  has  the  advice  of  the  State  board  of  pardons, 
which  investigates  all  applications  for  pardons,  and  makes 
recommendations  to  the  governor,  but  he  is  not  compelled 
to  follow  their  advice.  A  criminal  may  also  be  released 
in  other  ways.  Under  the  indeterminate  sentence  and  parole 
laws,  after  serving  one  year,  if  his  conduct  in  prison  has 
been  good,  he  may  be  released  on  parole.  If,  however,  he 
breaks  his  parole,  he  may  be  arrested  and  made  to  serve 
out  his  sentence  without  a  new  trial. 

Other  Powers.  The  governor  is  commander-in-chief 
of  the  State  militia  and  may  call  them  out  in  case  of  strikes 
or  mobs.  The  adjutant-general,  whom  he  appoints,  is  prac- 
tically the  head  of  the  militia.  The  fighting  strength  of 
the  State  or  its  militia,  consists  of  all  able-bodied  male  per- 
sons between  the  ages  of  eighteen  and  forty-five,  except 
certain  persons  exempt  by  the  laws  of  the  United  States. 


EXECUTIVE  155 

All  such  persons  enrolled  in  the  militia  may  be  called  out 
in  time  of  danger  in  the  State  or  nation.  Usually  the  mi- 
litia consists  of  men  who  voluntarily  enroll  in  the  Illinois 
National  Guard,  of  which  the  governor  is  commander-in- 
chief,  acting  through  the  adjutant-general.  All  enlistments 
are  for  three  years.  There  is  also  a  naval  branch  called 
the  Illinois  Naval  Reserve. 

The  governor  may  request  the  President  of  the  United 
States  to  send  Federal  troops  into  the  State  to  quell  any 
unusual  disturbance  which  the  militia  cannot  control.  The 
governor  may  also  request  of  the  President  the  extradition 
of  fugitives  from  justice  who  have  broken  the  laws  of  Illi- 
nois and  fled  to  a  foreign  country.  Persons  who  have  com- 
mitted a  crime  in  Illinois  and  fled  to  another  State  may  be 
returned  for  trial  through  requisition  papers  granted  by  the 
governor  of  the  State  to  which  the  fugitive  has  fled.  The 
governor  of  Illinois  must  make  request  for  such  papers. 

Social  and  Political  Powers.  The  governor  is  often  the 
head  of  his  political  party  in  the  State  and  has  an  unrivaled 
opportunity  to  build  up  his  own  "  political  machine " 
through  his  control  of  State  patronage,  familiarly  known 
as  the  State  "  plum  tree."  His  influence  in  his  party  is 
great  because  of  this  appointing  power.  A  State-wide 
civil-service  law,  vigorously  carried  out,  would  do  a  great 
deal  toward  correcting  this  condition  and  putting  the  State 
service  on  a  genuinely  efficient  basis.  The  present  civil- 
service  law  is  excellent  as  far  as  it  goes ;  but  it  is  too  limited 
to  cover  the  needs  of  the  State. 

The  governor  has  many  social  duties  in  attending  all 
kinds  of  public  meetings  and  opening  many  conventions 
and  conferences;  he  also  welcomes  and  frequently  enter- 
tains distinguished  visitors  to  the  State. 


156     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

The  Lieutenant-Governor.  If  the  governor  Is  re- 
moved by  impeachment,  resignation,  or  death,  the  Heuten- 
ant-governor  succeeds  to  the  office.  He  must  have  the  same 
quahfications  as  the  governor  and  is  elected  at  the  same  time 
for  the  same  term.  Whenever  the  governor  is  absent  from 
the  State,  the  Heutenant-governor  acts  for  him.  Governor 
Dunne  v^as  indeed  absent  from  the  State,  for  good  reasons. 
a  number  of  times  after  his  inauguration  February  1913. 
Lieutenant-Governor  O'Hara  was  thus  left  acting  governor 
an  unusual  number  of  times.  The  only  work  required  of 
him  in  the  meantime  is  to  preside  in  the  Senate  and  cast 
a  vote  if  there  is  a  tie.  He  is  not  required  to  reside  at 
Springfield  during  his  term.     His  salary  is  $2,500. 

The  Secretary  of  State.  This  elected  executive  of- 
ficer is  custodian  of  the  great  seal  of  Illinois  and  affixes  it 
to  all  important  documents;  publishes  the  laws;  keeps  all 
State  papers;  distributes  public  documents  to  any  citizens 
requesting  them;  issues  certificates  to  corporations  present- 
ing legal  charters;  has  charge  of  all  State  property  at 
Springfield.     His  salary  is  $7,500  per  year. 

The  Treasurer  has  charge  of  all  State  funds  and  pays 
them  out  on  a  warrant  issued  by  the  auditor.  By  a  re- 
cent law  he  is  required  to  turn  over  to  the  State  all  inter- 
est allowed  by  the  banks  on  deposits  of  State  money. 
Formerly  he  was  allowed  to  retain  such  interest  for  his  own 
use.  His  term  is  two  years  and  he  can  not  serve  two  con- 
secutive terms.  His  salary  is  $10,000  and  the  bond  re- 
quired is  $500,000.  His  large  salary  is  due  in  part  to  a 
recognition  of  the  disadvantage  he  is  under  through  his 
short  term.  This  short  term  and  no  immediate  chance  of 
a  second  one  are  among  the  devices  by  which  Illinois  safe- 
guards the  public  pocketbook. 


EXECUTIVE  157 

Auditor  of  Public  Accounts.  He  is  called  the  "  watch- 
dog of  the  State  treasury  "  because  he  is  bookkeeper  for  the 
State  and  must  balance  accounts  each  month  with  the  treas- 
urer. With  the  governor  and  the  treasurer,  he  determines 
the  tax  rate  required  to  raise  the  amounts  appropriated  by 
the  Legislature.  He  also  issues  all  warrants  on  the  treas- 
urer for  the  payment  of  State  money.     Salary  is  $7,500. 

Attorney  General.  Is  the  legal  adviser  of  all  State 
officers  and  of  the  one  hundred  and  two  State's  attorneys 
who  represent  the  State  in  the  counties.  He  draws  up  all 
contracts  where  the  State  is  a  party  and  prosecutes  or  de- 
fends all  lawsuits  for  and  against  the  State.  His  salary  is 
$10,000,  and  this  amount  is  supposed  to  secure  a  good 
legal  adviser  for  the  State  departments.  But  until  the 
voters  of  the  State  demand  a  State  government  run  for 
their  interests  more  than  for  the  politicians  of  some  party, 
we  can  not  expect  the  best  lawyers  of  the  State  will  be  will- 
ing to  accept  this  office,  even  if  the  salary  is  fair  compensa- 
tion. 

Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction.  Is  given  under 
Public  Education,  ch.  xii,  p.  168. 

These  seven  elected  executive  officers  are  legally  quite  in- 
dependent of  each  other  although  the  governor  is  respon- 
sible for  the  faithful  execution  of  all  the  laws  and  there- 
fore has  general  oversight  of  all  the  departments.  The 
heads  of  departments  must  make  annual  reports  to  the  gov- 
ernor and  any  special  reports  he  may  request. 

Would  Illinois  gain  through  greater  unity  in  her  State 
government?  Give  two  arguments,  pro  and  con,  on  this 
question. 


158      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

PERTINENT  QUESTIONS 

1.  If  greater  unity  in  State  government  is  desirable,  how  could 
it  be  brought  about? 

2.  Give  the  historical  reason  for  this  universal  American  prin- 
ciple of  "  decentralized  power  "  ? 

3.  Why  are  we  beginning  to  question  its  wisdom  for  the  twen- 
tieth-century State? 

4.  Why  is  it  difficult  for  the  governor  of  Illinois  to  carry  oat 
any  far-reaching  public  policy? 

5.  What  are  the  constitutional  relations  between  the  governor 
and  the  General  Assembly? 

6.  How  is  the  governor  dependent  on  the  Legislature? 

7.  Is  the  Legislature  in  any  sense  dependent  on  the  governor? 

8.  How  does  the  State  civil-service  commission  assist  the  gov- 
ernor ? 

9.  It  is  almost  impossible  to  obtain  fresh,  up-to-date  informa- 
tion from  State  officers.  The  reports  of  State  officers  and  com- 
missions are  printed  about  ten  months  after  the  year  for  which 
they  give  statistics.  How  can  this  very  inconvenient  custom  be 
remedied  ? 

10.  Who  is  responsible  for  the  printing  of  all  State  reports? 


CHAPTER  XI 

STATE  JUDICIARY 

References  : 

1.  Constitution  of  Illinois,  Art.  vi. 

2.  Revised  Statutes,  191 5,  chap,  xxxvii,  sees.  1-76. 

3.  Greene:     Government  of  Illinois,  pp.  90-94. 

The  constitution  of  Illinois  makes  definite  provision  for 
a  system  of  courts,  from  the  highest  to  the  lowest,  in  the 
following  words: 

"  The  judicial  powers  .  .  .  shall  be  vested  in  one  supreme 
court,  circuit  courts,  county  courts,  justices  of  the  peace,  police 
magistrates,  and  in  such  courts  as  may  be  created  by  law  in  and 
for  cities  and  incorporated  towns."     (Art.  vi,  sec.  i.) 

To  aid  in  understanding  the  interrelation  of  our  laws, 
from  State  to  Federal,  the  following  diagram  from  Guit- 
teau's  Government  and  Politics  in  the  United  States,  p. 
117,  is  worth  study: 

OUTLINE   A.      OUR   SYSTEM    OF   LAW. 


Federal 
Constitution 


Federal 
Statutes  and  Treaties 


State  Constitutions 


State   Statutes 


Common  Law  and  Equity 
159 


i6o     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

Common  Law  is  the  customary,  or  unwritten,  law 
that  prevails  in  this  country.  It  is  derived  from  England, 
and  is  the  great  body  of  English  customs,  established 
through  centuries  of  usage,  brought  to  America  by  the 
English  colonists,  and  cherished  by  them  as  their  most  pre- 
cious legal  heritage.  It  has  been  greatly  modified  by  de- 
cisions of  judges  in  this  country  and  by  statutes.  In  Illi- 
nois the  statute  provides  "  that  the  common  law  of  Eng- 
land so  far  as  applicable,  .  .  .  shall  be  considered  as  of 
full  force  until  repealed  by  legislative  authority."  (Rev. 
Stat.,  191 1,  ch.  xxvii,  sec.  i.) 

OUTLINE  B.      THE   COURTS  OF  ILLINOIS 


State 

Supreme 

Court. 


Four 

Appellate  Courts. 

Cook  County  two 

branch   courts  also. 


18  Circuit  Courts  in  State 
Three  Judges  each  except 

Cook  County*  i8th  Circuit,  has 
20  Judges. 

Cook    County    has     Superior, 
Criminal,  Juvenile  Courts. 


102 

County  Courts 

Seven  Counties  also  Separate  Probate  Courts 


Municipal  Court  for  Chicago,  31  judges. 
Special  City  Courts  in  19  other  cities 


Justices  of  the  Peace  Police  Magistrates 


STATE  JUDICIARY  i6i 

Equity  means  justice.  "  The  aid  of  a  court  of  equity- 
is  invoked  where  one  has  suffered  a  wrong  which  no  actual 
law  forbids,  or  where  there  may  be  complicated  account- 
ings too  detailed  for  the  swift  action  of  a  court  of  law/* 
For  instance,  you  may  suffer  wrong  through  the  act  of  some 
agent  for  your  property  where  he  has  broken  no  law  and 
yet  you  have  suffered  the  loss  of  a  large  sum  of  money. 
You  would  try  to  recover  your  money  through  an  equity 
case.  In  Illinois  any  court  presided  over  by  a  judge  is 
a  "  court  of  law  and  equity,"  but  in  some  of  the  States  there 
are  separate  courts  for  the  two  kinds  of  causes.  An  equity 
case  is  always  a  civil  action. 

United  States  Courts  in  Illinois.  There  are  three 
United  States  district  courts,  Northern,  Southern,  and 
Eastern,  and  a  United  States  circuit  court  of  appeals  held 
in  Illinois.  The  United  States  district  court  for  the  north- 
ern district,  eastern  division  (Chicago)  has  two  judges  as- 
signed. Judge  K.  M.  Landis  and  Judge  George  A.  Car- 
penter. The  western  division  of  the  northern  district  holds 
court  at  Freeport.  The  southern  district  holds  court  at 
Springfield  and  Quincy.  The  eastern  district  holds  court 
at  Danville,  Cairo,  and  East  St.  Louis. 

The  Municipal  Court  was  created  by  act  of  the  Legis- 
lature for  Chicago  and  under  the  power  of  an  amendment  to 
the  State  constitution  (1904)  allowing  special  legislation  for 
Chicago.  This  municipal  court  act  had  to  be  approved  by 
the  voters.  In  addition  there  are  now  nineteen  small  cities 
in  the  State,  as  East  St.  Louis,  Peoria,  and  Springfield,  that 
have  a  special  city  court  having  a  concurrent  jurisdiction 
with  the  State  circuit  courts  in  their  respective  cities. 

Jurisdiction  of  a  Court  may  be  of  four  kinds: 
Original,  if  a  case  must  begin  there;  appellate,  if  the  case 


i62      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

has  been  tried  in  a  lower  court  and  has  come  up  on  appeal ; 
concurrent,  when  there  are  two  or  more  courts  having  the 
same  kind  of  jurisdiction,  and  £nal,  if  the  case  rriust  end  in 
that  court  with  no  chance  of  appeal  to  a  higher  court. 

In  what  court  in  the  United  States  is  the  jurisdiction  al- 
ways final?  Has  any  Illinois  court  final  jurisdiction? 
What  courts  have  no  juries? 

The  work  of  the  justice  of  the  peace  and  the  police  magis- 
trate has  already  been  described.  For  the  municipal  court, 
see  pages  2y,  28,  161. 

Lawyers.  All  law^yers  in  Illinois  must  be  formally 
admitted  to  the  bar  after  passing  an  examination.  These 
legal  examinations  are  arranged  by  the  State  supreme  court, 
and  every  lawyer  in  the  State  admitted  to  the  bar  is  an  of- 
ficer of  the  court,  and  must  render  obedience  to  the  orders 
of  the  court.  Any  lawyer,  or  attorney,  who  fails  to  obey 
a  court  order,  or  to  show  proper  respect  to  the  judge,  or 
to  other  lawyers  in  court,  may  be  fined  for  ''  contempt  of 
court,"  if  the  judge  chooses  to  exact  such  a  penalty.  Many 
judges,  however,  tolerate  conduct  and  language  in  their 
court  rooms  from  lawyers  trying  cases  before  them  that 
never  ought  to  be  permitted.  The  dignity  of  our  State  and 
local  courts  would  be  greatly  improved  if  all  the  judges  in 
the  lower  courts  were  as  particular  about  the  decorum  ob- 
served in  their  court  rooms  as  are  the  Federal  judges. 

Supreme  Court.  The  supreme  court  is  the  highest 
in  the  State :  only  one  court  in  the  land  is  higher.  What 
one?  There  are  seven  judges,  elected  for  nine  years,  first 
Monday  in  June:  one  from  each  of  the  seven  judicial  dis- 
tricts into  which  Illinois  is  divided.  They  choose  one  of 
their  number  for  chief  justice.  Their  sessions  are  all  held 
at  Springfield,  beginning  in  October.     Their  principal,  or 


STATE  JUDICIARY  163 

"  first-hand  jurisdiction  "  is  cases  involving  the  constitu- 
tionality of  Illinois  laws,  cases  involving  taxes,  habeas 
corpus,  and  mandamus  cases.  Many  appealed  cases  come 
up  from  the  circuit  and  appellate  courts.  There  is  no  ap- 
peal from  their  decisions  unless  the  United  States  law  is 
involved,  when  the  case  goes  direct  to  the  United  States 
Supreme  Court. 

Appellate  Courts.  (Four:  two  branch  courts  in  Cook 
County.)  There  are  four  principal  appellate  courts  and 
two  branch  courts  for  Cook  County,  which  makes  a  dis- 
trict by  itself.  Three  judges  are  named  by  the  supreme 
court  to  act  as  appellate  judges  in  each  district  from  the 
large  number  of  circuit  judges  elected  by  the  voters.  They 
are  appointed  for  three  years,  but  are  generally  reappointed 
if  they  do  good  work.  It  is  counted  an  honor  to  be  thus 
chosen  by  fellow  judges  for  the  specialized  work  of  the 
appellate  court.  Cook  County,  making  one  of  the  appellate 
districts,  has  to  have  nine  judges  appointed  to  care  for  the 
large  number  of  cases  appealed  mainly  from  the  municipal 
courts  of  Chicago.  The  county  pays  half  the  salaries  of 
these  State  judges,  who  preside  in  the  courts  of  Cook 
County.  There  are  no  juries  in  the  appellate  courts  and 
nearly  all  cases  tried  are  those  appealed  from  the  county, 
circuit,  or  municipal  courts. 

Circuit  Courts.  (18.)  Illinois  is  divided  into  eight- 
een circuits.  Cook  County  making  the  eighteenth.  Three 
judges  are  elected  the  first  Monday  in  June  from  each  cir- 
cuit except  the  eighteenth,  and  they  serve  six  years.  From 
Cook  County  twenty  judges  are  elected  and  the  number 
is  increased  nearly  every  session  of  the  Legislature. 
County  judges  are  constantly  called  to  serve  in  Cook 
County  to  fill  the  places  of  the  circuit  judges  chosen  for 


i64     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

appellate  duty.  The  circuit  courts  care  for  the  cases  ap- 
pealed from  the  county  courts  and  for  any  cases  arising 
between  citizens  living  in  different  counties. 

Outline  the  three  State  courts,  supreme,  appellate,  and  circuit, 
under  the  following  topics : 

1.  Composition. 

2.  Manner  of  choosing. 

3.  Term  of  Office. 

4.  Jurisdiction. 

a.  Original. 

b.  Appellate. 

c.  Final. 

5.  Salary. 


CHAPTER  XII 
PUBLIC  EDUCATION  IN  ILLINOIS 

References  : 

1.  Revised  Statutes,  ch.  cxxii  (School  Laws,  our  final  authority). 

2.  Greene :     Governmeni  of  Illinois,  pp.  190-205  (a  very  clear,  com- 

plete account). 

3.  Boynton:     School  Civics  with  Civics  of  Illinois,  pp.  60-63  (brief 

but  clear). 

*'  Religion,  morality,  and  knowledge  being  necessary  to 
good  government  and  the  happiness  of  mankind,  schools 
and  the  means  of  education  shall  forever  be  encouraged." 

This  sentence  from  the  famous  Ordinance  of  1787  {Am. 
Republic,  p.  50)  embodies  the  principal  reasons  for  the 
free  public  school  system  of  Illinois  as  well  as  the  other 
States  formed  from  the  Old  Northwest  Territory.  It  de- 
serves memorizing  by  every  citizen  in  the  State  and  is  the 
Magna  Charta  of  our  public  schools.  In  harmony  with 
the  Ordinance,  the  present  State  constitution  says :  "  The 
General  Assembly  shall  provide  a  thorough  and  efficient  sys- 
tem of  free  schools  whereby  all  the  children  of  this  State 
may  receive  a  common-school  education."     (Art.  viii,  sec. 

School  Taxes.  Nine-tenths  of  the  money  needed  to 
support  the  public  schools  comes  direct  from  taxes  levied 
in  each  school  district.  In  addition  to  the  local  taxes  of 
the  districts,  the  State  levies  a  school  tax  of  $3,000,000 

i6s 


i66     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

annually.^  This  is  appropriated  by  the  General  Assembly 
at  each  biennial  session.  The  Legislature  of  191 1  doubled 
this  tax,  which  helps  the  less  wealthy  districts  maintain 
better  schools.  This  State  school  fund  is  divided  by  the 
auditor  of  public  accounts  among  the  102  counties  of  Illinois 
in  proportion  to  the  number  of  children  under  twenty-one 
years  of  age.  The  county  superintendent  of  each  county 
receives  his  share  of  the  State  fund  from  the  county  col- 
lector and  distributes  in  turn  to  the  township  treasurers  in 
the  county.  The  township  (school)  treasurer  then  divides 
it  between  the  school  districts  in  his  township  according  to 
the  children  under  twenty-one. 

Permanent  School  Funds.  The  same  process  is  used 
in  distributing  the  permanent  school  funds  held  by  the  State. 
The  largest  of  these  for  the  common  schools  is  the  Town- 
ship Fund,  amounting  now  to  more  than  fifteen  millions. 
By  the  Enabling  Act  of  18 18,  Section  16,  or  its  equivalent, 
in  every  township  was  given  by  the  National  Government 
for  the  support  of  schools  in  that  township.  This  grant 
amounted  to  over  one  million  acres.  All  of  it  has  now  been 
sold  except  about  seven  thousand  acres,  lying  principally  in 
Chicago.  The  Chicago  schools  receive  nearly  a  million 
dollars  annually  from  the  rentals  of  these  unsold  school 
lands.  Their  market  value  is  hundreds  of  millions  and  in- 
creasing each  year. 

In  some  of  the  Western  States,  like  Idaho  and  Wyoming, 
where  they  have  profited  by  our  mismanagement  of  school 
lands,  no  district  tax  is  levied,  but  the  schools  are  run 
entirely  from  rentals  from  unsold  school  lands. 

State  School  Fund.  The  second  largest  permanent 
fund  for  the  common  schools  is  the  State  school  fund. 
*Act  of  Legislature,  1913. 


PUBLIC  EDUCATION  IN  ILLINOIS         167 

Three  per  cent.,  less  one-sixth  (one-half  of  one  per  cent.) 
of  the  proceeds  of  the  sale  of  all  public  lands  in  lUinois 
was  given  to  the  public  schools.  The  one-sixth  deducted 
was  set  aside  for  higher  education. 

The  surplus  revenue  fund  is  an  interesting  one  because 
of  its  source.  Illinois  received  nearly  half  a  million  dollars 
in  1835  from  the  National  Government  when,  for  the  first 
time  in  its  history,  the  United  States  was  not  only  free  from 
debt,  but  a  capitalist.  Congress  voted  to  "  permanently 
loan  "  these  surplus  millions  to  the  different  States,  and 
suggested  the  application  of  this  unexpected  cash  to  the 
school  fund;  which  wise  advice  Illinois  followed.  The 
principal  of  all  these  funds  has  been  spent  by  the  State  long 
ago;  but  Illinois  has  pledged  her  honor  to  pay  to  the  com- 
mon schools  annually  the  interest  on  the  funds  at  six  per 
cent. 

Higher  Education  in  the  State.  At  the  head  of  Illi- 
nois' system  of  higher  education  stands  the  State  Univer- 
sity at  Urbana.  This  great  State  school,  or  rather  collec- 
tion of  schools,  owes  its  existence  to  a  large  gift  of  land 
made  by  Congress  to  the  loyal  States  during  the  Civil  War. 
This  grant  was  made  for  the  express  purpose  of  establish- 
ing colleges  whose  leading  object  must  be  to  teach  "  agri- 
culture and  the  mechanic  arts."  The  result  of  this  wise 
action  by  Congress  was  the  founding  of  agricultural  col- 
leges in  all  of  the  Western  States.  The  Illinois  Industrial 
University  was  founded  then  as  the  State's  response  to  this 
offer.  The  university  was  reorganized  as  the  "  University 
of  IlHnois  "  in  1885. 

The  University  is  governed  by  a  board  of  trustees  in- 
cluding the  governor,  president  State  Board  of  Agriculture, 
superintendent   of   public   instruction,   and  nine  men   and 


i68     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

women  elected  by  the  men  and  women  voters  of  the  State. 
The  Legislature  makes  very  large  appropriations  for  the 
maintenance  of  the  University  in  addition  to  the  interest 
received  from  the  permanent  funds  for  higher  education. 

There  are  also  five  normal  schools  for  the  training  of 
teachers,  located  in  the  different  sections  of  the  State,  at 
DeKalb,  Carbondale,  Normal,  Macomb,  and  Charleston. 

State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction.  The 
State  superintendent  of  public  instruction  is  the  ranking 
school  officer  in  the  State,  although  his  actual  power  is  not 
great  because  the  local  boards  manage  the  schools  in  their 
districts  quite  independently.  He  is  elected  for  four  years, 
in  November  of  the  alternate  even  year.  His  election  is 
planned  to  come  in  the  even  year  between  the  election  of 
Presidential  electors,  to  keep  the  State  school  offices  out  of 
politics  as  far  as  possible. 

Duties.  His  duties  are  mainly  advisory.  The  county 
superintendents  report  directly  to  him  and  he  is  their  legal 
adviser.  He  must  send  a  biennial  report  to  the  governor 
and  recommend  any  changes  in  the  school  laws  he  thinks 
wise;  he  issues  State  certificates  for  ten  years  and  for  life 
to  teachers  who  pass  certain  examinations  and  is  ex-officio 
a  member  of  the  University  board  of  trustees.  He  is  con- 
stantly called  on  to  give  public  addresses  on  educational 
questions  and  an  able  superintendent  may  thereby  exert 
much  influence  indirectly  on  the  school  system  of  the  State. 

County  Superintendent.  This  officer  represents  the 
State  in  school  matters  in  the  county;  is  directly  responsi- 
ble to  the  State  superintendent,  and  must  report  annually  to 
him.  His  salary  is  paid  by  the  State.  He  distributes  the 
county's  share  of  the  annual  State  school  fund  of  three 
million  dollars  to  the  towns  in  his  county ;  conducts  exami- 


PUBLIC  EDUCATION  IN  ILLINOIS         169 

nations  and  grants  certificates  to  all  teachers,  who  without 
such  certificate  could  not  draw  salary  from  the  taxes ;  holds 
teachers'  institutes  each  summer  and  other  meetings  during 
the  year ;  visits  all  public  schools  in  the  county  and  suggests 
improvements.  He  is  particularly  required  to  supervise 
and  assist  the  rural  schools.  A  movement  has  been  started 
under  the  county  superintendents  to  encourage  the  teaching 
of  agriculture  and  give  more  practical  education  to  the  boy 
and  girl  in  the  country.  (Ch.  iv:  p.  75.) 

Local  School  Administration.  The  Illinois  school 
law  makes  the  congressional  township  the  school  township 
and  unit  of  school  government  (Rev.  Stat.,  ch.  cxxii,  sec. 
30).  Therefore  a  school  township  always  coincides  with 
some  congressional  township.  Remember,  however,  the 
school  officers  are  in  no  sense  town  officers.  The  actual 
management  of  the  schools,  however,  is  vested  in  the  school 
district.  If  the  school  district  contains  a  thousand  people 
there  must  be  a  board  of  education  elected  by  the  men  and 
women  voters  of  the  district.  This  board  shall  consist  of 
a  president,  elected  for  one  year,  and  six  members  elected 
for  three  years,  the  president  and  two  members  to  be 
chosen  annually.  There  must  be  three  additional  members 
for  every  ten  thousand  people  up  to  a  board  of  fifteen. 
Cities  above  one  hundred  thousand  population  (Chicago) 
must  have  a  board  of  education  of  twenty-one  members,  ap- 
pointed by  the  mayor  with  the  consent  of  the  council,  for 
three  years;  seven  to  be  appointed  annually.  The  board 
selects  the  president  from  its  own  members.  This  is  an 
excellent  illustration  of  the  method  pursued  by  the  General 
Assembly  to  evade  the  provision  against  special  legislation 
in  the  State  constitution.  Cities  are  grouped  in  classes  ac- 
cording to  population.     In  the  class  referred  to  above,  of 


I70     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

course  Chicago  is  the  only  city  to  qualify.  Why  not  be 
honest  and  remove  from  the  constitution  such  a  "  dead  let- 
ter "  so  far  as  it  affects  Chicago,  and  give  that  great  city 
much  needed  legislation  directly  ?   ( i ) 

The  board  of  education  in  Chicago  must  get  the  consent 
of  the  council  to  issue  bonds,  buy  or  lease  school  sites,  erect 
or  purchase  school  buildings.  For  the  powers  and  duties 
of  the  board,  see  Rev.  Statutes,  chapter  cxxii,  sections  178- 
179;  also  pp.  171,  172  of  this  book.  School  boards  and  di- 
rectors throughout  the  State  have  the  right  to  condemn  pri- 
the  owner."  This  is  the  famous  right  of  eminent  do- 
main (2),  the  right  of  the  "greatest  good  to  the  greatest 
number,"  and  is  granted  school  boards  in  Illinois  directly 
by  law.  (Rev.  Stat.,  ch.  cxxii,  sec.  148.)  If  the  owner  of 
the  property  desired  for  the  use  of  the  schools  refuses  to 
accept  a  reasonable  price,  then  condemnation  proceedings 
are  begun  in  court ;  the  price  may  be  fixed  by  a  jury  and  the 
owner  is  compelled  to  accept  it.  This  is  just,  because  no 
individual,  or  group  of  individuals,  ought  to  block  the 
rights  of  a  larger  group.  The  property  rights  of  a  private 
citizen  are  amply  protected  in  the  United  States  constitu- 
tion.    (See  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  Amendment 

V.) 

School  Township  Trustees.  Each  school  township 
elects  three  trustees  as  the  business  officers  for  its  school 
affairs.  Their  term  is  three  years.  One  is  elected  annually 
on  the  second  Saturday  of  April,  by  the  legal  voters  of  the 
township,  men  and  women.  In  school  townships  where 
the  boundaries  coincide  with  those  of  a  town  (3),  the  school 
trustees  are  elected  on  the  same  day  as  the  town  officers 
(the  first  Tuesday  in  April),  for  convenience,  and  to  save 
the  expense  of  a  separate  election.     Any  resident,  twenty- 


PUBLIC  EDUCATION  IN  ILLINOIS         171 

one  years  old,  is  eligible  for  the  office ;  but  no  two  trustees 
shall  reside,  when  elected,  in  the  same  school  district,  nor 
can  any  person  be  trustee  and  director  at  the  same  time. 

Duties  of  School  Trustees.  The  trustees  have  three 
main  duties:  (a)  To  divide  the  township  into  school  dis- 
tricts for  the  convenience  of  those  who  attend  the  schools; 
(b)  to  appoint  a  township  treasurer  who  handles  all  school 
funds  in  the  township;  (c)  to  hold  all  school  property,  both 
lands  and  buildings,  in  their  name.  They  may  also  estab- 
lish a  township  high  school  if  the  people  of  the  township 
vote  for  one  at  an  election  called  for  that  purpose. 

District  Boards  of  Directors.^  After  a  township  is 
divided  by  the  trustees  into  school  districts,  each  having 
less  than  one  thousand  population  (unless  it  contains  an 
incorporated  city  or  village),  each  district  must  elect  three 
directors  who  are  charged  with  the  management  of  the  dis- 
trict school.  Their  term  is  three  years  and  one  is  chosen 
annually  on  the  third  Saturday  in  April  by  the  legal  voters 
of  the  district,  including  men  and  women.  Neither  trus- 
tees nor  directors  receive  any  pay  for  their  services. 
Women  are  eligible  for  directors.  The  board  of  directors 
must  establish  and  keep  in  running  order  one  or  more  free 
schools  for  at  least  no  days  of  actual  teaching  each  year, 
to  accommodate  all  children  in  the  district  between  the  ages 
of  six  (compulsory  age  is  seven)  and  twenty-one.  The 
directors  appoint  the  teachers,  fix  their  salaries,  levy  the 
school  tax  for  the  district,  and  have  entire  charge  of  the 
schools.  They  are  the  educational  officers  for  a  school  dis- 
trict, while  the  trustees  are  the  business  school  officers  for 
the  entire  township. 

High  Schools.  Any  school  board  has  the  right  to  es- 
2  Rev.  Stat.,  ch.  cxxii,  sees.  121-125. 


172     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

tablish  a  high  school  to  provide  the  first  steps  toward  higher 
education.  The  high  school  is  properly  named  the  "  peo- 
ple's college,"  and  ought  to  be  the  most  democratic  school 
in  all  our  system.  Public  kindergartens,  manual  training, 
domestic  science,  music,  and  drawing  may  be  provided 
under  special  teachers  if  the  voters  of  the  district  so  author- 
ize the  board  through  an  election. 

Compulsory  School  Law.  School  must  be  held  in 
every  district  at  least  no  days  in  the  year  and  all  children 
between  seven  and  fourteen  are  compelled  to  attend  under 
penalty.  The  parents  may  be  brought  into  court  by  the 
truant  officer  and  fined  if  they  fail  to  keep  their  children 
in  school  the  required  months.  Children  who  are  feeble- 
minded, blind,  or  crippled  are  provided  with  special  instruc- 
tion, or  legally  excused  from  attendance. 

Township  High  Schools.  This  form  of  high  school 
is  in  much  favor  in  Illinois.  There  are  about  one  hundred 
in  the  State.  A  township  high  school  is  organized,  after  a 
special  election  has  authorized  its  establishment,  by  electing 
a  township  hoard  of  five  members,  who  have  full  control  of 
the  high  school.  The  advantages  of  such  a  high  school  are : 
(a)  more  taxable  property,  hence  larger  revenue,  better 
buildings,  grounds,  and  equipment;  (b)  more  careful  su- 
pervision because  the  township  board  gives  its  time  and 
effort  to  the  high  school  alone;  (c)  more  pupils  can  attend 
without  paying  tuition.  It  also  enables  the  poorer  districts 
in  a  township  to  unite  their  funds  and  get  such  an  advanced 
school,  which  otherwise  they  could  not  afford  to  have. 
April  is  the  usual  month  in  Illinois  for  school  elections. 
Consult  the  Revised  Statutes,  chapter  cxxii,  for  the  exact 
Saturday. 

Teachers'   Pension   Fund.     Illinois   has   a   Teachers* 


PUBLIC  EDUCATION  IN  ILLINOIS         173 

Pension  Fund,  created  by  act  of  the  Legislature  in  191 5, 
which  applies  to  all  the  cities  and  school  districts  in  the 
State  except  Chicago  and  Peoria.  The  fund  is  created  by 
certain  amounts  deducted  from  the  salaries  of  all  teachers 
coming  under  its  provision  and  the  remainder  comes  from 
the  State.  The  pension  granted  after  twenty-five  years  of 
teaching  is  four  hundred  dollars.  The  teachers  contribut- 
ing elect  three  of  the  five  trustees  who  manage  the  fund  and 
the  State  superintendent  and  State  treasurer  are  ex-officio 
members  of  the  pension  board. 

SUMMARY  ILLINOIS  SCHOOL  SYSTEM   BY  OUTLINE 

(a)  State  superintendent    (i) 

(b)  County  superintendents  (102) 

(c)  School  directors  (3  in  each  township) 

(d)  Township  school  trustees  (3  in  each  township) 

(e)  Township  treasurer  (i) 

(f)  Board  of  education  (elected)    (7-15) 

(g)  Board  of  education  (appointed)    (21) 

PERTINENT  QUESTIONS 

1.  Which    of    these    officers    are    elected?     Which    appointed? 
Which  receive  any  salary? 

2.  To  which   school  offices   are   women   eligible?     (Rev.   Stat., 
ch.  cxxii,  sec.  290.) 

3.  To  whom  are  school  taxes  paid? 

4.  How  does  a  teacher  get  her  salary? 

5.  If  refused  payment,  could  she  legally  recover  her  salary? 

6.  How  would  you  secure  an  athletic  field  for  your  school? 

7.  How    often    may   text-books    be   changed   in   your   district? 
(Rev.  Stat.,  ch.  cxxii,  sec.  146.) 

8.  How  could  your  township  get  a  township  high  school? 

9.  What  difference  in  government  between  a  township  and  a 
city  high  school? 

10.  How  could  your  district  get  a  kindergarten?    What  chil- 
dren could  attend  it? 


174     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

11.  Do  the   citizens   in   your   district  use   the   schoolhouse   for 
meetings  outside  of  school  hours? 

12.  If  not,  why? 

13.  Why  should  the  property  of  a  bachelor  be  taxed  to  support 
the  schools? 

14.  Why  must  the  property  of  a  non-resident  pay  a  school  tax? 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE  MERIT  SYSTEM  IN  ILLINOIS 

STATE,    COUNTY,    AND    CITY    CIVIL-SERVICE    COMMISSIONS 
GENERAL   REFERENCES 

1.  Edward  Cary:     The  Merit  System — The  Spoils  System. 

2.  Elizabeth  Luther  Cary:    A  Primer  of  the  Civil  Service  and 

the  Merit  System. 

3.  Clinton  B.  Woodruff:     The  Merit  System  in  Municipalities. 

4.  The  Business  Value  of  Civil-Service  Reform. 

5.  Imogen  B.  Oakley:    Spread  of  Civil-Service  Reform  Prin- 

ciples through  Women's  Clubs. 

6.  W.  W.  Vaughan:     Every  Man  on  His  Own  Merits.     (These 

are  furnished  schools  by  Women's  Auxiliary,  Massachu- 
setts Civil  Service  Reform  Association  —  usually  without 
charge.  Address  Miss  Marion  C.  Nichols,  31  Beacon 
Street,  Boston,  for  list  of  their  valuable  publications  and 
reports. 

SPECIAL  REPORTS  FOR  ILLINOIS 

7.  Eighteenth  Annual  Report  Cook  County  Civil-Service  Com- 

mission, September,  19 13. 

8.  Report,  1914,  of  Chicago  Civil-Service  Commission. 

9.  Report,  1914,  Illinois  State  Civil-Service  Commission.     (Send 

to  the  County,  City,  or  State  authorities  for  these  interest- 
ing reports.)  (i) 
"  Civil-Service  Reform  has  survived  the  doubts  of  its  friends,  as 
well  as  the  rancor  of  its  enemies,  and  has  gained  a  permanent 
place  among  the  agencies  destined  to  cleanse  our  politics  and  to 
improve,  economize,  and  elevate  the  pubic  service." — Grover 
Cleveland. 

175 


176     ACTUx\L  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

"  Civil-Service  Reform  is  as  democratic  and  as  American  as 
the  public-school  system." —  Theodore  Roosevelt. 

Meaning  of  Civil  Service.  "  The  purpose  of  civil- 
service  legislation  is  to  provide  a  non-political  method  of 
determining  fitness  of  applicants  for  public  positions,  and 
to  prevent  their  removal  for  any  political  or  religious  reason. 
The  method  of  determining  fitness  for  these  positions  is  by 
practical,  competitive  examinations,  open  to  all  citizens  alike. 
From  these  examinations  eligible  lists  are  made  up  by  rating 
applicants  in  the  order  in  which  they  have  passed  an  ex- 
amination. And  from  these  lists,  in  the  same  order,  posi- 
tions are  filled. 

""  The  purpose  of  the  plan  is  to  plaice  the  public  civil 
service  on  a  business-like  basis,  so  that  public  business  may 
be  transacted  as  efficiently  and  honestly  as  in  any  private 
concern" —  First  Annual  Report  of  the  Illinois  Civil-Serv- 
ice Commission. 

History  of  the  Movement.  The  United  States  Gov- 
ernment has  had  a  civil-service  law  —  The  Pendleton  Act 
—  since  1883.  The  spoils  system — "to  the  victor  belong 
the  spoils  of  the  enemy  " —  came  in  under  President  Jack- 
son, about  1830,  and  for  over  half  a  century  that  degrad- 
ing, wasteful  system  of  office-holding  prevailed  throughout 
the  country  and  covered  State  and  local  governments  as 
well  as  Federal. 

"  Without  the  shedding  of  blood  there  is  no  remission 
of  sins."  The  American  people  were  at  last  aroused  to  the 
dangers  of  this  vicious  system  by  the  death  of  President 
Garfield,  shot  by  a  disappointed  ofiice-seeker.  The  Pendle- 
ton Act  was  the  response  to  awakened  public  opinion  that 
a  '*  public  office  is  a  public  trust,"  and  an  office-holder  only 
a  trustee  for  the  public  who  employs  him. 


THE  MERIT  SYSTEM  IN  ILLINOIS        177 

The  post-office  department  was  the  first  one  placed  on  a 
merit  basis,  and  its  great  growth  in  amount  of  business  and 
in  efficient  service  to  the  people  dates  from  that  time.  At 
present  nearly  260,000  Federal  officers  are  in  the  classified 
service  —  about  two-thirds  of  the  entire  Federal  service  — 
and  the  major  part  of  the  clerical  positions  in  all  ten  cabinet 
departments  at  Washington  are  under  this  common-sense 
method  of  determining  fitness  to  hold  government  positions. 
Thomas  Jefferson's  three  qualifications  for  office-holding 
have  never  been  improved  on:  (ist)  Is  he  honest?  (2nd) 
Is  he  capable?  (3rd)  Will  he  be  faithful  to  the  constitu- 
tion ?  Honesty,  efficiency,  patriotism  —  where  will  you 
find  a  better  official  creed? 

City  Civil  Service.  In  1895  the  first  civil-service  law 
in  Illinois  passed  the  General  Assembly,  applicable  to  cities 
only,  and  after  a  referendum  vote.  Under  its  provisions 
Chicago  and  Evanston  each  adopted  civil  service  and  thus 
became  the  pioneer  cities  in  Illinois  to  begin  the  merit  sys- 
tem. Chicago  has  only  about  fifty  positions  exempt  out 
of  its  huge  pay-roll  of  24,000  persons.  This  does  not 
count  the  school  teachers  or  the  judges  of  the  municipal 
court. 

The  Chicago  civil-service  commission  has  done  some 
notable  work  during  its  twenty-one  years  of  life.  The  spe- 
cial features  of  its  excellent  record  (2)  are  :  Equal  salaries 
for  equal  duties,  or  for  all  employees  in  the  same  class ;  pro- 
motion through  examination  only  and  for  efficiency  alone; 
appropriate  examinations,  or  those  having  a  more  direct 
bearing  upon  the  requirements  of  the  position  to  be  filled. 

To  examine  scrub  women  in  arithmetic  and  grammar  is 
absurd.  A  test  for  physical  strength  and  endurance,  added 
to  some  knowledge  of  practical  sanitation,  is  much  more  to 


178     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

the  point.  The  Chicago  commission  proposes  to  carefully 
adjust  its  tests  to  the  requirements  of  the  work  to  be  per- 
formed. It  is  already  a  pioneer  in  introducing  practical 
tests  as  a  prominent  feature  of  its  examinations.  These 
are  best  understood  by  a  few  illustrations : 

A  bridge-tender  is  wanted.  The  commission  requires  a 
strong  man  with  perfect  sight  and  hearing;  the  mental  ex- 
amination for  such  a  position  forms  a  small  part  of  the 
whole  test.  Then  the  appointee  is  required  to  take  sight 
and  hearing  tests  from  time  to  time,  to  be  sure  his  eyes  and 
ears  continue  perfectly  normal. 

A  meat  inspector  is  needed.  One  day  he  takes  a  written 
examination  on  the  theoretical  part  of  his  work.  The  next 
day  he  is  taken  to  the  stock-yards  and  told  to  select  healthy 
and  diseased  meats ;  if  diseased,  to  state  what  is  the  trouble 
and  if  there  is  a  possible  remedy. 

For  the  fire  and  police  departments  fourteen  physical 
tests  for  strength,  agility,  and  endurance  are  required.  A 
given  height,  weight,  girth  of  chest,  and  lung  expansion 
are  also  necessary.  The  result  we  see  in  the  thirty-five 
hundred  Chicago  policemen,  who  are  as  fine  a  set  of  men 
physically  as  you  will  find  anywhere.  To  show  how  this 
weeding  process  operates,  look  at  one  of  the  examinations 
for  patrolmen.  Out  of  eight  hiindred  and  forty-eight  ap- 
plicants, only  about  twenty-five  per  cent,  passed  all  these 
severe  tests. 

The  Chicago  commission  also  maintains  a  character-in- 
vestigation department,  where  the  honesty  and  reputation 
of  the  applicant  is  looked  up,  just  as  a  bonding  company 
investigates  the  character  of  a  prospective  bank  cashier  be- 
fore they  will  issue  a  bond  for  him.  A  common  trick  to 
evade  civil-service  regulations  was  for  a  strong  man  to  take 


THE  MERIT  SYSTEM  IN  ILLINOIS        179 

the  physical  tests,  a  bright  one  the  mental  examination,  and 
an  entirely  different  person  —  but  all  three  under  the  same 
name  —  to  get  the  appointment.  This  is  prevented  by  the 
system  of  identification  used,  where  a  print  of  the  forefinger 
is  made  at  different  times  under  all  these  tests,  and  of  course 
must  be  identical. 

There  has  been  a  very  decided  change  in  sentiment  on 
civil-service  questions  during  the  last  few  years.  Formerly 
the  merit  system  was  regarded  mainly  as  protecting  the 
employee  from  grasping  politicians  and  spoilsmen.  Now 
the  viewpoint  has  shifted  to  the  interests  of  the  tax-paying 
public.  The  efficiency  of  the  public  service  is  the  leading 
object.  As  the  counsel  for  the  Chicago  commission  once 
expressed  it,  "  The  individual  may  suffer,  but  I  feel  I  repre- 
sent and  am  to  safeguard  the  City  of  Chicago," — a  very 
radical  change  of  sentiment  from  the  welfare  of  the  indi- 
vidual to  the  benefit  of  the  community,  but  quite  in  line  with 
the  trend  of  modern  thought  on  many  topics.  A  large  num- 
ber of  cities  in  the  State  now  have  civil-service  commissions 
and  have  placed  their  firemen  and  policemen  at  least  under 
merit  rules. 

The  Merit  System  in  Cook  County.  The  county 
civil-service  commission  of  three  is  appointed  by  the  presi- 
dent of  the  county  board  for  a  term  of  three  years;  but 
the  terms  are  so  arranged  that  only  one  commissioner  is 
appointed  each  year.  Under  the  present  law  the  consent 
of  the  county  board  is  not  required.  Cook  County  had  the 
honor  of  the  first  woman  civil-service  commissioner  (3)  in 
Illinois  and  the  second  in  United  States.  The  county  char- 
ity service  owes  much  to  her  wise  administration.  The 
charitable  institutions  of  Cook  County  were  first  placed  un- 
der the  merit  system  in  1895  ;  but  for  nearly  eight  years  the 


i8o     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

administration  of  the  law  was  only  a  joke.  The  fact  that 
not  even  a  stenographer  was  employed  by  the  civil-service 
commission  is  proof  the  law  was  a  dead  letter.  Then  pub- 
lic opinion  began  to  demand  better  enforcement  of  the  law. 
The  account  that  follows  was  largely  taken  from  the  admir- 
able Eighteenth  Annual  Report  of  the  Cook  County  Civil- 
Service  Commission,  issued  three  years  ago  but  just  as  illu- 
minating now  as  then. 

Purpose  of  the  Act.  "  The  purpose  of  the  County 
Civil-Service  Act  is  to  maintain  a  system  of  employment 
in  the  various  county  offices  and  institutions,  based  solely 
on  merit  and  efficiency.  Positions  in  the  county  service  are 
not  owned  by  the  successful  candidates  or  political  leaders 
who  happened  to  have  a  majority  of  the  votes  at  the  last 
election,  but  belong  to  the  whole  people  of  the  county. 
Every  citizen,  according  to  his  ability  to  do  the  work  re- 
quired in  the  county  service,  should  have  exactly  the  same 
opportunity  for  employment  possessed  by  any  other  citizen. 
The  examinations,  which  test  ability,  should  be  practical 
and  impartial  tests,  directed  to  the  sole  question  of  relative 
fitness  to  perform  the  duties  of  the  position.  The  county 
hospital  requires  doctors;  the  State's  attorney,  lawyers;  the 
county  treasurer,  clerks;  and  the  county  recorder,  record 
writers.  Appointments  to  these  or  other  county  positions 
ought  never  to  be  based  upon  service  in  a  ward  club,  or  upon 
supposed  loyalty  to  a  factional  political  leader.  Politics  has 
nothing  whatever  to  do  with  a  doctor's  care  of  the  sick, 
with  the  prosecution  of  crime,  with  the  making  out  of  tax 
bills,  or  the  writing  up  of  titles  to  real  estate.  Ability  to  do 
the  work  required,  as  measured  by  reasonable  standards  of 
efficiency,  is  under  the  Civil-Service  Act  made  the  sole  basis 
of  public  employment.     The  elimination  under  persistent 


THE  MERIT  SYSTEM  IN  ILLINOIS        i8i 

and  systematic  treatment  of  inefficient  employees  and  of 
conditions  of  employment  which  breed  waste  and  ineffi- 
ciency are  alike  a  benefit  to  the  public  and  to  the  public  em- 
ployees." 

A  sweeping  civil-service  law,  putting  all  the  large  fee 
offices  under  merit  rule,  was  passed  by  the  Legislature  in 
1911. 

The  Exempt  Service.  "  On  the  20th  of  February, 
191 3,  these  great  fee  offices  of  the  county,  the  county  treas- 
urer, the  county  clerk,  the  sheriff,  the  offices  of  the  clerks 
of  the  circuit,  superior,  county,  probate,  and  criminal  courts, 
the  election  commission,  the  State's  attorney's  office,  the 
assessor's  office,  the  board  of  review,  the  coroner's  office, 
and  the  recorder's,  became  exempt  from  the  provisions  of 
the  Civil-Service  Act  because  the  supreme  court  found  that 
the  Legislature  had  failed  to  print  some  forty  words  of  the 
191 1  Act.  A  new  civil-service  act,  so  zuorded  it  will  stand 
the  test  of  the  supreme  court  and  he  declared  constitutional, 
that  will  place  these  great  fee  offices  under  merit  rule,  is 
one  of  the  imperative  needs  of  Cook  County.  It  is  esti- 
mated a  half  million  dollars  annually  could  easily  be  saved 
the  tax-payers  through  such  a  law  honestly  enforced." 

A  recent  illustration  of  the  truth  of  this  estimate  is 
furnished  by  the  county  agent's  office.  Before  an  examina- 
tion was  required,  forty-five  investigators  were  employed 
to  determine  the  condition  of  persons  applying  for  county 
poor  relief.  After  examination,  only  seven  were  found 
necessary  to  handle  all  such  investigations. 

How  the  Spoils  System  Works.  "  The  system  under 
which  appointments  are  now  made  to  the  exempt  offices 
does  not  differ  much  from  the  system  in  vogue  for  twenty 
years  past.     Candidates  for  office  are  usually  asked  to  sign 


i82     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

the  customary  pledge  to  place  all  positions  in  their  depart- 
ments at  the  disposal  of  the  County  Central  Committee  of 
the  party  winning  the  election.  Some  department  heads 
may  succeed,  after  negotiation,  in  retaining  a  few  positions 
for  their  personal  friends  and  helpers.  Necessity  compels 
the  retention  of  a  few  old  employees  who  are  familiar  with 
the  routine  work  of  an  office."  For  example,  since  the  last 
county  election,  less  than  a  dozen  experienced  employees 
out  of  an  office  force  of  over  seventy,  were  retained  by  the 
board  of  assessors  to  do  the  very  important  work  of  assess- 
ment of  property  in  the  richest  county  in  the  State. 

"  The  agreement  is  usually  enforced  that  the  great  bulk 
of  the  county  positions  shall  be  pooled  in  the  hands  of  the 
County  Committee.  The  County  Committee  allots  these 
positions,  graded  according  to  salary,  to  the  various  party 
leaders,  according  to  the  size  and  nature  of  the  party  vote 
polled  in  their  districts.  Factional  differences  modify  the 
size  of  certain  shares,  but  the  principle  of  allotment  has  been 
maintained.  When  a  vacancy  in  the  county  service  occurs, 
the  privilege  of  filling  it  belongs  of  right  to  a  particular 
party  leader.  He,  in  turn,  has  obligations  in  the  wards 
and  precincts  under  him.  Grotesque  misfits  of  men  in  posi- 
tions where  the  only  thing  they  understand  is  the  salary 
attached,  are  the  inevitable  consequences  of  this  system. 

"  A  burdensome  political  obligation  is  placed  upon  county 
employees  in  the  exempt  service.  Though  they  are  paid 
from  the  county  treasury,  a  considerable  part  of  their  time 
is  devoted  to  partisan  work.  An  employee  must  be  able 
to  *  deliver  his  precinct,'  or  to  show  a  certain  number  of 
votes  in  it,  if  he  expects  to  retain  his  position.  Increase  in 
salary  and  promotion  depend  on  the  same  practical  test. 
His  job  is  always  at  stake.     He  will  be  dropped  from  the 


THE  MERIT  SYSTEM  IN  ILLINOIS        183 

pay  roll  if  he  fails  to  deliver  the  requisite  number  of  votes. 
There  are  about  forty  thousand  public  employees  within  the 
geographical  limits  of  Cook  County.  A  civil-service  lav^ 
is  the  only  barrier  against  the  exploitation  of  these  men 
and  women  for  political  purposes.  Until  such  a  law  is  ap- 
plied to  all  these  positions,  the  voters  of  Cook  County  have 
but  a  slender  chance  to  determine  real  political  issues,  or  to 
decide  upon  the  relative  merits  of  candidates  for  elective 
offices." 

The  Illinois  primary  law  is  at  present  a  party  measure, 
and  nomination  by  petition  the  only  chance  for  a  non-parti- 
san candidate.  But  such  a  candidate  has  slender  chance 
of  winning  at  the  polls  when  he  must  overcome  the  strenu- 
ous partisan  work  of  a  crowd  of  office-holders  whose 
**  jobs  "  depend  on  the  success  of  their  party. 

One  of  the  important  sections  in  every  civil-service  law 
forbids  an  employee  from  electioneering  of  all  kinds,  nor 
can  he  be  compelled  to  contribute  to  any  campaign  fund. 
His  time  and  his  pocketbook  are  thus  protected  from  the 
raids  of  candidates  for  the  elective  offices.  "  That  the 
merit  system  of  Cook  County  has  survived  the  attacks  of 
its  enemies  is  proof  of  the  soundness  of  its  principles. 
Twice  the  people  of  the  county  have  endorsed  the  merit  sys- 
tem; the  last  time  in  1910  by  a  majority  of  nearly  100,000 
votes."  There  are  now  (October  19 16),  1,100  positions 
in  the  classified  service,  or  places  under  the  civil-service  law. 
One  great  evil  is  usually  the  large  number  of  temporary 
appointments  —  those  made  for  sixty  days  —  without  the 
applicant  passing  any  examination.  Sometimes  these  ap- 
plications are  renewed  so  many  times  that  the  position  really 
becomes  "  exempt,"  and  persons  who  have  honestly  passed 
an  examination  and  been  placed  on  the  eligible  list  are 


i84     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

thereby  kept  out  of  an  office  to  which  they  are  entitled. 
When  the  reform  county  civil-service  commission  began 
work  (March  i,  1913),  there  were  462  temporary  appoint- 
ees in  a  charity  service  of  1,074  positions.  By  holding  11 1 
examinations  in  six  months,  they  finally  reduced  the  tempo- 
rary appointees  to  147  out  of  a  charity  service  of  1,074 
persons.  This  is  one  of  the  vital  tests  of  an  honestly 
enforced  civil-service  law.  Measured  by  this  standard,  as 
well  as  other  tests,  the  merit  system  in  Cook  County  has 
gone  backward  since  the  change  in  administration  in  19 14. 
The  present  commission  is  of  the  old-style  political  type.^ 

The  Merit  System  in  the  State.  The  youngest  of  the 
civil-service  acts  of  Illinois,  that  of  1905,  is  the  State  Act, 
when  the  General  Assembly  by  statute  applied  the  merit 
system  to  the  seventeen  charitable  institutions  of  the  State. 
The  present  number  of  such  institutions  is  twenty-one. 
This  law  was  a  hard- won  victory  for  civil-service  reform 
after  a  long  struggle  in  the  Legislature,  and  was  only  a 
shred  of  the  original  bill  introduced.  The  only  positions 
exempt  in  the  charity  institutions  are  the  superintendents 
of  the  State  hospitals  and  State  schools,  whose  important 
places  are  still  regarded  as  "  spoils  of  office,"  to  the  dis- 
grace of  the  State.  A  list  of  the  State  charitable  institu- 
tions and  their  locations  will  be  found  in  the  chapter  on 
State  Charity  Service,  pp.  196  and  197. 

The  State  of  Illinois  cares  for  about  22,000  dependents 
in  the  State  institutions.  By  far  the  largest  number  are 
insane  patients,  cared  for  in  the  nine  State  hospitals,  and 

iThe  valuable  Eighteenth  Annual  Report  of  the  Cook  County  Civil- 
Service  Commission  was  largely  the  work  of  its  president,  Robert 
Catherwood.  Other  members  of  the  commission  were  Miss  Anna  E. 
Nicholes,  secretary,  and  W.  F.  Corby.  (4) 


THE  MERIT  SYSTEM  IN  ILLINOIS         185 

these  helpless  state  wards  are  especially  in  need  of  wise  and 
experienced  care.  The  protection  of  these  helpless  men  and 
women  from  political  employees,  and  their  wiser,  more  hu- 
mane treatment,  were  the  principal  reasons  for  the  adoption 
of  the  Illinois  Civil-Service  law  of  1905.  The  entire  treat- 
ment of  the  insane  in  our  State  has  been  revolutionized  since 
that  year. 

Illinois  was  the  first  State  to  introduce  oral  examinations 
in  connection  with  the  written  and  physical  tests  required. 
For  such  positions  as  house-father  and  house-mother  at 
the  reform  schools  the  personal  qualities,  tact,  and  common- 
sense  of  the  applicants  count  far  more  than  any  mental  test. 
These  qualities  can  be  determined  better  by  a  personal  in- 
terview than  in  any  other  way.  The  Illinois  commission 
has  developed  a  practical  system  for  such  interviews,  always 
providing  a  stenographer  to  record  every  question  and  an- 
swer, and  keeping  all  such  records  as  part  of  the  examina- 
tion. 

At  the  State  Eye  and  Ear  Infirmary  in  Chicago  the  entire 
staff  of  oculists  and  aurists,  about  eighty,  serve  without  pay, 
and  yet  submit  to  a  hard  written  examination,  and  then  are 
taken  on  some  designated  day  into  the  clinic  room  and  all 
the  cases  for  that  day,  nearly  one  hundred,  are  put  under 
their  charge  to  test  their  practical  skill.  These  applicants 
perform  all  operations  under  the  eye  of  skilled  specialists, 
who  of  course  take  care  no  harm  comes  to  any  patient 
through  the  awkwardness  or  ignorance  of  the  candidate 
for  a  staff  position.  The  doctors  estimate  it  is  worth  ten 
thousand  dollars  a  year  to  be  known  as  a  member  of  the 
operating  staff  of  the  Illinois  Eye  and  Ear  Infirmary,  so 
they  can  well  afford  to  give  their  services  to  the  State  for  a 
term  of  years. 


i86      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

The  most  recent  example  of  a  practical  examination  con- 
ducted by  the  State  Civil-Service  Commission  was  one  for 
grain-inspectors.  The  management  of  this  examination 
was  turned  over  to  the  grain-committee  of  the  Chicago 
Board  of  Trade,  and  they  were  told  to  give  exactly  the  kind 
of  test  they  would  in  their  own  private  business.  After 
writing  on  certain  questions,  the  applicants  were  given 
twenty-seven  samples  of  wheat,  oats,  barley,  corn,  and  rye, 
and  were  obliged  to  test  them  and  grade  them  according 
to  their  knowledge  gained  through  previous  experience  in 
handling  grain.  The  type  of  grain-inspector  selected 
through  such  an  examination  shows  its  practical  common- 
sense.  (5) 

Conclusion.  A  good  law  is  recognized  by  its  foes  as 
well  as  its  friends.  The  professional  politician,  the  man 
who  desires  office  solely  for  what  he  can  get  out  of  it,  the 
old-time  spoilsman,  these  men  of  course  will  fight  the  merit 
system.  But  in  their  opposition,  if  they  only  can  be  com- 
pelled to  come  into  the  open  and  declare  their  real  senti- 
ments, they  will  reveal  themselves  so  unmistakably  that  their 
constituents  will  know  beyond  a  shadow  of  a  doubt  what 
manner  of  public  servants  they  are.  Here  lies  the  great 
benefit  of  a  roll-call  vote  on  an  important  measure,  in  the 
General  Assembly,  and  why  the  legislators  avoid  its  tell- 
tale black  and  white  evidence  whenever  possible.  To  the 
mass  of  private  citizens  there  is  much  calm  satisfaction  in 
watching  the  struggles  of  certain  unfortunate  law-makers, 
impaled  like  flies  on  pins,  when  they  are  caught  in  a  roll- 
call  vote. 

Keep  a  sharp  lookout  on  the  State  senator  and  the  three 
representatives  from  your  district  for  their  vote  on  every 
civil-service  bill.     Watch  their  record  on  the  roll  calls  as 


THE  MERIT  SYSTEM  IN  ILLINOIS        187 

reported  in  the  daily  papers  and  the  bulletins  of  the  Legis- 
lative Voters'  League,  and  judge  the  men  by  this  touchstone 
of  good  citizenship. 

PERTINENT  QUESTIONS 

1.  Why  are  so  many  politicians  against  the  merit  system? 

2.  How  will  the  tax-payer  be  benefited  by  an  honestly  enforced 
civil-service  law? 

3.  Give  six  arguments  in  favor  of  the  merit  system. 

4.  Can  you  give  any  good  argument  in  favor  of  the  spoils  sys- 
tem? 

5.  Why  is  this  method  of  office-holding  called  the  "  spoils  sys- 
tem"? 

6.  Show  how  the  name  fits  the  act. 

7.  How  does  the  merit  system  protect  the  office-holder? 

8.  What  are  political  assessments? 

9.  What  is  meant  by  electioneering?  Can  you  give  an  actual 
illustration  of  it? 

10.  What  do  you  consider  the  best  way  to  select  a  civil-service 
commission  ? 

11.  If  the  civil-service  commissioners  are  mere  political  ap- 
pointees, what  evils  result? 

12.  Whom  does  the  "exempt"  office-holder  obey?  Whom  does 
he  serve?  Who  pays  his  salary?  What  kind  of  public  service 
will  he  give? 


CHAPTER  XIV 

STATE  CHARITY  SERVICE 

References  : 

1.  Revised  Statutes,  ch.  xxiii,  1-50. 

2.  Annual    Reports    Board    of    Administration,    Address    Secretary, 

James  Hyland,  Springfield,  111. 

3.  Annual  Reports  State  Charities   Commission,  address  Secretary, 

A.  L.  Bowen,  Springfield. 

4.  Institution  Quarterly  (Official  organ  of  the  public  charity  service 

of  Illinois)  :  published  jointly  by  Board  of  Administration, 
Charities  Commission,  and  Psychopathic  Institute;  editor,  A. 
L.  Bowen,  Springfield.  The  quarterly  is  furnished  free  of 
charge  to  any  citizen  of  Illinois  who  wishes  regular  informa- 
tion regarding  Illinois'  public  charity  service. 

5.  Greene :     Government  of  Illinois,  ch.  xii,  "  Wards  of  the  State." 

(Read  this  chapter  if  possible.) 

THE  PLATFORM   OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  ILLINOIS'   CHARITY  LAW 

"  To  provide  humane  and  scientific  treatment  and  care 
and  the  highest  degree  of  individual  development  for  the 
dependent  wards  of  the  State ; 

"  To  provide  for  delinquents  such  wise  conditions  of 
modern  education  and  training  as  will  restore  the  largest 
possible  portion  of  them  to  useful  citizenship; 

"  To  promote  the  study  of  the  causes  of  dependency  and 
delinquency  and  mental,  moral,  and  physical  defects,  with 
a  view  to  cure  and  ultimate  prevention ; 

"  To  secure  the  highest  attainable  degree  of  economy  in 
the  business  administration  of  the  State  institutions  con- 
sistent with  the  objects  above  enumerated,  and  this  Act, 

188 


STATE  CHARITY  SERVICE  189 

which  shall  be  known  as  the  code  of  charities  of  the  State  of 
Illinois,  shall  be  liberally  construed  to  these  ends."  (Rev. 
Stat,  ch.  xxiii,  sec.  2.) 

State  Board  of  Administration.  The  amended  char- 
ity law  of  Illinois,  in  force  July  i,  191 2,  is  worth  study. 
It  is  necessary  first  to  understand  the  legal  machinery  pro- 
vided in  the  Act  to  carry  out  its  purpose  as  stated  in  the 
preamble.  At  the  head  stands  the  State  Board  of  Admin- 
istration of  five  members  to  manage  the  twenty-one  char- 
itable institutions  supported  by  the  State.  The  five  mem- 
bers of  this  board  are  appointed  by  the  governor  with  con- 
sent of  the  Senate,  for  six  years,  and  not  more  than  three 
can  be  of  the  same  political  party.  They  are  each  paid 
$6,000  per  year  and  actual  traveling-expenses.  The  exec- 
utive secretary  and  all  the  employees  of  the  board  are  un- 
der civil-service  rules,  but  not  the  members  of  the  board 
itself.  These  positions  are  still  part  of  the  governor's 
patronage.  Headquarters  are  at  Springfield  and  the  mem- 
bers of  the  board  must  give  their  entire  time  to  their  duties. 
Illinois  began  the  experiment  of  a  single  board  instead  of 
one  for  each  institution,  January  i,  19 10,  and  the  success 
gained  in  more  economical,  efficient  management  is  bring- 
ing the  State  charity  service  slowly  but  steadily  to  a  higher 
grade,  (i) 

State  Charities  Commission.  The  same  law  that  es- 
tablished the  Board  of  Administration  (January  i,  1910), 
also  created  a  State  Charities  Commission  of  five  members, 
appointed  by  the  governor,  with  consent  of  the  Senate,  but 
serving  without  compensation  except  necessary  traveling 
expenses.  Their  term  is  five  years.  The  secretary  of  State 
must  provide  the  commission  with  an  office,  stationery,  and 
office  supplies.     Their  headquarters  are  at  Springfield  and 


I90     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

they  have  a  paid  executive  secretary  who  is  under  the  civil 
service.  Their  duties  are  "  to  visit  and  investigate  the 
whole  system  of  pubHc  charitable  institutions  of  Illinois." 

The  duties  of  the  Board  of  Administration  and  of  the 
Charities  Commission  are  not  the  same.  The  members  of 
each  are  required  by  the  law  to  visit  at  unexpected  times, 
both  day  and  night,  all  the  charitable  institutions  of  the 
State  at  least  every  quarter.  But  the  field  of  work  for  the 
Board  of  Administration  is  principally  financial  and  execu- 
tive, the  buying  of  all  supplies,  care  of  the  land  and  build- 
ings, the  business  and  property  side  of  the  institution ;  while 
the  Charities  Commission  is  charged  with  the  oversight  of 
the  patients,  inmates,  and  children  cared  for ;  to  see  that  they 
are  humanely  treated  and  placed  where,  if  improvement  is 
possible,  they  may  have  a  chance  for  recovery.  Such  mat- 
ters as  the  physical  condition  of  patients,  their  food,  cloth- 
ing, cleanliness,  medical  care,  recreation,  employment,  if 
able  to  work,  course  of  study  in  the  schools,  kind  of  teachers, 
discipline, —  all  these  things  are  inspected,  complaints  heard 
and  investigated  by  the  Charities  Commission  and  their 
secretary,  who  gives  his  entire  time  to  this  work  and  is  a 
man  thoroughly  trained  in  public  charity  service.  To  see 
that  the  kitchen,  dining-room,  dormitory,  laundry,  bath- 
room, cellar,  storeroom,  hospital  ward,  and  schoolroom  of 
every  State  charitable  institution  is  in  good  condition  and 
suited  to  the  needs  of  the  patients  and  inmates  is  a  very 
important  work,  difficult  to  do.  The  Charities  Commission 
investigates  and  reports  to  the  Board  of  Administration 
what  they  find  and  how  conditions  may  be  improved  at  the 
twenty  charitable  institutions  now  established.  The  new 
State  hospital  for  the  insane  at  Alton  has  not  yet  been 
opened,  nor  the  Surgical  Institute  for  Crippled  Children 


STATE  CHARITY  SERVICE  191 

even  located.  A  State  colony  for  improvable  epileptics  is 
also  being  built  at  Dixon.  After  a  campaign  of  nearly 
twenty  years,  the  Legislature  (1912)  made  a  suitable  appro- 
priation for  the  site  and  buildings  and  the  colony  will  be 
opened  in  1916.^ 

The  State  Board  of  Administration  appoint  the  superin- 
tendents of  all  the  charitable  institutions  and  may  remove 
them  at  pleasure,  as  they  are  not  protected  by  the  civil 
service  —  a  point  that  needs  reform.  The  legal  power  of 
control,  of  course,  is  vested  in  the  Board  of  Administration, 
while  the  Charities  Commission  has  only  visitorial  and  ad- 
visory power.  The  law  states  that  "  five  persons  "  and 
"  reputable  citizens  "  are  to  compose  the  board  and  commis- 
sion. At  present  no  woman  is  a  member  of  either,  but 
there  is  nothing  in  the  wording  of  the  law  to  prevent  a 
woman  serving,  and  these  positions  are  ones  particularly 
adapted  to  women,  and  where  the  services  of  the  mother, 
the  housewife,  and  home-maker  would  be  of  special  benefit 
to  the  unfortunate  w^ards  of  the  State. 

Boards  of  Visitors.  In  addition  to  the  Board  of  Ad- 
ministration and  the  Charities  Commission  just  described, 
the  law  provides  a  board  of  three  visitors,  one  of  whom  shall 
be  a  woman,  for  each  one  of  the  twenty  charitable  institu- 
tions; to  be  appointed  by  the  governor  and  serve  without 
any  pay  except  actual  traveling  expenses.  These  three 
visitors  must  make  thorough  monthly  inspection  of  the  in- 
stitution and  report  their  findings  to  the  State  Charities 
Commission  within  ten  days  of  their  visit.  Generally  the 
board  of  visitors  live  near  the  institution  and  therefore  will 
feel  a  local  pride  and  interest  in  helping  the  superintendent 
through  kindly  suggestion  and  advice  to  keep  the  institu- 
tion up  to  the  best  standard  of  service.  Any  unkindness  to 
patients  and  inmates  will  be  more  quickly  detected  and 
iSeepp.  193-194, 197. 


192     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

stopped  if  these  monthly  inspections  are  conscientiously 
made. 

Complete  State  Care  of  the  Insane.  July  i,  191 2,  the 
Board  of  Administration  assumed  control  of  the  Cook 
County  asylum  for  the  insane  at  Dunning.  There  are 
about  3,000  patients  in  the  asylum.  The  legal  name  is  now 
the  Chicago  State  Hospital.  At  last  Illinois  has  complete 
care  of  the  insane  within  her  borders.  Even  those  in  pri- 
vate sanitariums  are  supervised  by  the  Board  of  Adminis- 
tration, as  no  such  private  hospital  can  receive  patients  suf- 
fering from  any  mental  or  nervous  disease  without  a  license 
from  the  State  Board,  which  can  be  revoked  at  any  time  the 
hospital  fails  to  come  up  to  the  standard  of  care  set  by  the 
board. 

There  are  at  present  (October,  19 16)  over  16,400  insane 
men,  women,  and  children  in  the  nine  State  hospitals,  out 
of  more  than  22,000  State  wards  in  all  the  charitable  insti- 
tutions. (See  The  Institution  Quarterly,  June,  1916,  p. 
8.)  (2)  When  the  new  hospital  being  built  at  Alton  is 
finished,  it  will  provide  for  1,500  more.  It  is  unfortunate 
that  the  opening  of  this  fine  new  hospital  for  the  insane  has 
been  so  long  delayed.  All  the  State  hospitals  are  badly 
over-crowded  and  that  means  adequate  care  cannot  be  given 
to  the  patients  no  matter  how  earnestly  the  hospital  staff  and 
attendants  may  try  to  relieve  the  situation.  By  far  the 
heaviest  burden  on  the  taxpayers  for  the  charity  service  of 
the  State  is  imposed  by  the  care  of  this  unfortunate  class. 

Psychopathic  Institute.  This  fact  makes  the  scien- 
tific study  of  the  cause  and  cure  of  insanity  carried  on  at 
the  State  Psychopathic  (mental  disease)  Institute  of  very 
great  value.  The  institute  also  provides  invaluable  train- 
ing for  the  doctors  at  the   State  hospitals,   who  are  all 


STATE  CHARITY  SERVICE  193 

encouraged  to  take  a  six-weeks'  course  in  the  institute  every 
year.  They  are  working  toward  a  solution  of  the  big 
problems,  "What  causes  insanity?"  "Is  it  curable?" 
"  If  so,  how?  "  The  facts  just  stated  from  the  records  of 
the  State  hospitals  emphasize  the  importance  of  sound  men- 
tal habits  to  every  one.  The  constant  practice  of  a  few  sim- 
ple, well-established  rules  of  mental  hygiene  would  help  de- 
crease this  great  Illinois  army  of  the  mentally  sick  by 
diminishing  the  supply.  "  Beware  of  alcohol !  Be  clean 
in  mind  and  body.  Be  temperate  in  work  and  recreation. 
Don't  worry.     Look  on  the  bright  side  of  all  your  troubles.'* 

All  the  State  hospitals  have  training  schools  for  nurses 
and  attendants.  Dental  service  is  now  provided  in  all  the 
State  institutions. 

State  Institutions  for  Children.  The  State  of  Illinois 
has  assumed  complete  care  of  the  blind,  deaf,  delinquent^ 
feeble-minded  child,  of  the  dependent  child  in  the  pool 
house,  and  of  the  soldiers'  orphan.  A  list  of  all  these  insti- 
tutions is  found  at  the  end  of  this  chapter  and  should  be 
studied.  The  Surgical  Institute  for  Crippled  Children  (i) 
is  another  much  needed  State  charity.  A  law  has  been 
passed  creating  such  an  institution  under  certain  conditions 
as  yet  unfulfilled. 

The  Colony  for  Epileptics  is  to  be  a  farm  colony  located 
on  a  thousand-acre  tract  of  suitable  land  to  give  all  the 
out-door  employment  possible  to  the  inmates.  The  build- 
ings are  to  be  only  two  stories  and  of  fire-proof  construction. 
There  are  to  be  inclines  instead  of  stairs  in  all  the  buildings 
and  every  possible  precaution  used  to  prevent  the  epileptics 
housed  in  these  cottages  from  injuring  themselves  in  their 
seizures.  It  is  hoped  the  Board  of  Administration  will  make 
all  reasonable  speed  in  getting  this  much-needed  institu- 
tion ready  for  use.  (3)     It  is  estimated  there  are  now  in 


194     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

Illinois  at  least  ten  thousand  persons  suffering  from  epilepsy, 
and  their  need  of  State  care  is  very  great.  (4)  Only  young 
people  and  cases  possible  to  cure  will  be  cared  for  at  this 
new  farm  colony  near  Dixon. 

Care  for  the  Blind.  In  addition  to  the  State  school 
for  blind  children  at  Jacksonville  and  the  Industrial  Home 
for  the  Blind  in  Chicago,  there  is  a  new  work  being 
undertaken  throughout  the  State  to  teach  blind  men  and 
women  in  their  homes.  Teachers  are  sent  to  these  adult 
blind  on  request  and  a  very  excellent  work  has  been  begun. 
Illinois  has  an  excellent  record  for  its  very  humane  care 
of  the  blind.  (5) 

Soldiers'  Homes.  Illinois  is  generous  in  her  care  of 
the  old  soldier  and  sailor,  too  feeble  to  work.  The  State 
also  makes  special  provision,  in  separate  homes,  for  the 
widow  of  the  man  who  has  fought  for  his  country,  and  for 
his  orphaned  children.  "  These  provisions  for  veterans 
and  their  families  may  be  regarded  not  as  charity  in  the 
ordinary  sense  but  as  the  discharge  of  a  public  debt." 
(Greene,  Government  of  Illinois,  p.  168.) 

Delinquent  Boys  and  Girls.  The  St.  Charles  School 
for  Boys  is  on  the  cottage  plan ;  has  a  large  farm  connected 
with  the  institution  and  cares  for  about  six  hundred  delin- 
quent boys.  A  few  miles  away,  at  Geneva,  is  the  State 
Training  School  for  Girls,  where  delinquent  girls  are  cared 
for,  educated,  and  trained  for  some  useful  occupation  when 
they  leave  the  institution  at  twenty-one.  By  good  conduct 
a  girl  may  earn  a  much  shortened  sentence. 

Poor  Relief.  The  State  requires  the  counties  to  care 
for  the  pauper  class,  or  dependent  poor.  This  includes  all 
persons  who  for  any  reason  are  not  able  to  support  them- 
selves and  have  no  family  or  relatives  to  care  for  them. 


STATE  CHARITY  SERVICE  195 

The  county  may  build  an  infirmary,  or  poor  house,  located 
on  a  farm  owned  by  the  county ;  or  the  persons  to  be  pro- 
vided for  may  be  "  boarded  out  "  with  some  citizen  of  the 
county.  This  method  is  rapidly  being  abandoned  as  ex- 
pensive and  not  very  humane,  because  of  the  natural  desire 
to  make  all  the  money  possible  out  of  the  county  paupers. 
Instead  the  counties  are  building  county  infirmaries  to  house 
and  feed  their  poor  who  must  be  cared  for  in  an  institution. 
In  counties  under  township  organization,  the  town  super- 
visors act  as  overseers  of  the  poor  and  may  give  ^*  out-door 
relief  "  in  their  homes,  or  send  the  dependent  poor  to  the 
County  Home,  or  infirmary,  as  seems  best.  The  universal 
dread  of  this  institution  in  the  minds  of  the  self-respecting 
poor  is  the  best  comment  on  its  general  reputation  and 
plainly  shows  where  public  charitable  methods  need  revision. 
Where  poverty  is  the  result  of  sickness,  accident,  or  mis- 
fortune, why  should  the  victim  feel  so  disgraced  if  com- 
pelled to  enter  the  county  poor  house  that  many  times  an 
assumed  name  is  given  on  entrance  for  fear  some  former 
acquaintance  may  discover  the  compulsory  retreat  ?  On  the 
other  hand,  public  charity  is  too  often  abused  by  the  vicious, 
the  lazy,  and  the  "  political  poor,"  who  are  able  to  care  for 
themselves,  or  have  relatives  who  should  be  compelled  to 
assume  the  burden  of  their  support.  The  sensible,  humane 
poor  master  has  a  difficult  problem  to  solve  in  sifting  out 
the  "  wheat  from  the  chafY "  in  the  human  rubbish  heap 
with  which  he  must  deal.  In  the  non-township  counties, 
the  county  board  appoints  a  "  justice  of  the  peace  or  other 
suitable  person  "  to  serve  as  overseer  or  poor  master. 

Greatest  Need  of  the  Charity  Service.  The  charity 
service  of  Illinois  costs  over  three  million  dollars  a  year, 
exclusive  of  the  large  sums  spent  by  the  counties  in  poor 


196      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

relief,  and  the  Board  of  Administration  is  responsible  for 
the  wise  use  of  this  large  sum.  The  board  is  trustee  for  all 
the  property  of  these  twenty  institutions,  which  is  valued 
at  fourteen  million  dollars.  This  large  investment  in  land, 
buildings,  equipment,  and  the  millions  spent  each  year  from 
the  taxes,  represent  the  sincere  effort  of  this  great  State  to 
give  wise,  kindly  care  to  the  twenty-two  thousand  unfortu- 
nate wards  within  its  borders.  There  should  be  no  politics 
allowed  in  this  care  for  the  insane,  blind,  deaf,  feeble- 
minded, and  delinquent.  Public  opinion  should  demand  of 
the  governor  absolutely  non-partisan^  merit  appointments 
to  the  Board  of  Administration.  Citizens  should  serve 
notice  on  every  governor  of  Illinois  that  the  positions  on 
the  board  can  not  he  used  to  reward  his  political  friends. 
The  Board  of  Administration  never  ought  to  be  considered 
a  part  of  the  "  spoils  of  office."  It  goes  without  saying 
that  no  superintendent  of  any  State  charitable  institution 
ought  to  be  dependent  on  the  election  returns  for  his  tenure 
of  office.  Yet  this  has  always  been  the  case,  and  it  is  true 
now.  The  superintendents  of  these  institutions  usually  con- 
form to  the  politics  of  the  party  in  power  and  change  with 
the  downfall  of  the  party.  The  sooner  Illinois  protects  the 
heads  of  her  charitable  institutions,  particularly  the  superin- 
tendents of  the  State  hospitals  for  the  insane,  by  a  civil- 
service  law,  the  sooner  the  State  institutions  will  move 
toward  the  place  Illinois  ought  to  take  in  the  care  of  the  de- 
pendent wards  of  the  State. 

STATE  CHARITY  SERVICE 
State  Charitable  Institutions  and  Their  Locations 

Lincoln  State  School  and  Colony  (for  feeble-minded) Lincoln 

Illinois  School  for  the  Deaf Jacksonville 


STATE  CHARITY  SERVICE  197 

The  Illinois  School  for  the  Blind Jacksonville 

Illinois  Industrial  Home  for  the  Blind. 

Chicago,  cor.  Douglas  Boulevard  and  19th  St. 

The  Illinois  Soldiers'  and  Sailors'  Home Quincy 

The  Soldiers'  Widows'  Home  of  Illinois Wilmington 

The  Illinois   Soldiers'   Orphans'  Home Normal 

The  Illinois  Charitable  Eye  and  Ear  Infirmary. 

Chicago,  904  W.  Adams  St. 

The  State  Training  School  for  Girls Geneva 

The  St.  Charles  School  for  Boys St.  Charles 

State  Psychopathic  Institute  (for  study  of  the  causes  and  pos- 
sible cure  of  insanity.     A  similar  institute  is  needed  at  the 

Chicago  State  Hospital  at  Dunning) Kankakee 

Illinois  Surgical  Institute  for  Children Not  located 

(The  law  creating  this  "  Surgical  Institute  for  Crippled  Children " 
requires  a  donation  of  i6o  acres  of  land  for  a  site  from  the  community 
where  it  is  located.  No  city,  village,  or  country  district  in  the  State 
has  yet  offered  this  prize.  There  is  great  need  for  this  institute  where 
a  crippled  child  under  fourteen  could  be  placed  for  surgical  treatment, 
which  would  probably  save  such  a  child  from  becoming  a  public 
charge.) 

111.  State  Colony  for  Improvable  Epileptics.     Opened  1916  .  .Dixon 

For  Care  of  the  Insane 

Elgin   State   Hospital Elgin 

Kankakee  State  Hospital Kankakee 

Jacksonville  State  Hospital  Jacksonville 

Anna  State  Hospital Anna 

Watertown  State  Hospital Watertown 

Peoria  State  Hospital  (for  chronic  or  incurable  cases) Peoria 

Chester  State  Hospital  (criminal  insane) Menard 

Chicago  State  Hospital  (since  July  i,  1912) Dunning 

Alton  State  Hospital  (being  built) Alton 


CHAPTER  XV 

AMENDMENT  OF  THE  ILLINOIS  CONSTITUTION 

Constitution,  Article  XIV 

I.    FIRST,  OR  CONVENTION  METHOD. 

A.  Proposal. 

1.  By  a  two-thirds  vote  in  both  houses  of  the  General  Assem- 

bly  to   submit   the   question   of   a   constitutional   conven- 
tion to  the  people  at  next  general  election. 

2.  Submitted  to  people  at  such  election:  total  majority  of  all 

votes  cast  at  the  election  must  be  favorable  to  the  con- 
vention. 

3.  General  Assembly  must  in  that  case  at  next  session  provide 

for  such  convention  by  law. 

4.  Number  of  delegates  must  be  double  the  number  in  the 

Senate   (102),  to  be  elected  in  the  same  manner,  place, 
time,  and  districts  as  State  senators. 

5.  Convention  to  meet  within  three  months  and  frame  a  new 

constitution 

B.  Ratification. 

Submitted  to  people  at  special  election:  total  majority  of  all 

votes  cast  at  that  election  must  be  favorable  to  the  new 

constitution  or  it  will  fail  of  adoption. 
This  method  would  take  about  six  years  and  requires  a  vote 

in  two  sessions  of  the  Legislature  and  at  a  general  and  a 

special  election  by  the  people. 
198 


AMENDMENT  OF  THE  CONSTITUTION     199 

II.    SECOND    METHOD   OR    "  SHORT    CUT." 

A.  Proposal. 

Single  amendment  at  a  time. 

Must  be  by  two-thirds  vote  in  both  houses. 

B.  Ratification. 

Total  majority  of  all  the  votes  cast  at  the  next  general  elec- 
tion must  be  in  favor  of  proposed  amendment  if  it  is 
carried.     Is  printed  on  separate  or  "  little  ballot." 

C.  Restrictions  on  this  method  of  amending: 

1.  Only  one  amendment  may  be  proposed  by  General  Assem- 

bly at  any  one  session. 

2.  Assembly  may  not  offer  an  amendment  to  the  same  article 

oftener  than  once  in  four  years. 

A  constitution  nearly  fifty  years  old,  made  in  the  nine- 
teenth century,  for  a  State  with  only  2,500,000  people,  can 
not  suit  the  unforeseen  needs  of  the  twentieth  century  and 
a  population  close  to  six  millions. 

Could  a  constitution  be  nailed  down  any  tighter  than 
Illinois'  ?  How  many  years  will  it  take  to  get  the  amend- 
ments needed  if  Illinois  has  the  constitutional  dress  she  ab- 
solutely requires  ?  The  present  constitution  "  was  born 
before  the  trolley,  the  electric  hght,  the  telephone,  the  auto- 
mobile, the  sky-scraper.  These  familiars  of  our  daily  life 
were  unknown  to  the  framers  of  the  constitution." 

To  "amend  the  amending  clause" — Article  XIV  —  al- 
lowing a  number  of  amendments  to  be  submitted  to  the 
people  at  once,  has  been  proposed  as  a  practical  "  short 
cut  "  through  part  of  our  difficulties.  But  it  would  give  us 
only  temporary,  partial  relief.  In  the  end  our  necessi- 
ties would  compel  us  to  resort  to  a  constitutional  conven- 
tion to  obtain  simplicity  and  flexibility  of  form  and  relief 


200     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

from  too  many  independent  taxing  bodies.  The  demand 
for  a  constitutional  convention  is  being  heard  most  per- 
sistently from  the  northern  half  of  the  State,  particularly 
in  Chicago  and  Cook  County,  where  three  hundred  and 
seventy  separate  taxing  bodies  (i),  with  widely  varying 
rates,  lead  to  great  confusion  in  government  and  waste  of 
public  money. 

An  editorial  in  the  Chicago  Tribune,  October  23,  191 3, 
entitled,  "  Give  Us  a  Convention,"  is  of  interest  on  this 
point.  A  constitutional  convention  is  urged  "  at  the  earli- 
est practical  date  as  the  surest  means  of  obtaining  addi- 
tional charter  power  for  the  city  and  as  the  only  means  of 
securing  the  power  to  consolidate  the  three  municipalities  " 
(Chicago,  Cook  County,  sanitary  district). 

The  council  is  urged  to  petition  the  governor  of  Illinois 
to  call  a  special  session  of  the  Legislature  ''  to  consider  the 
supreme   need   for   holding  a   constitutional  convention." 

"  But  Chicago  ought  not  to  look  at  the  constitutional  con- 
vention proposal  from  a  selfish  point  of  view.  We  are 
citizens  of  the  State  and  the  State  needs  constitutional  re- 
lief. Not  only  Chicago,  but  the  State,  has  long  outgrown 
the  constitution  of  1870,  and  while  our  needs  may  be  more 
dramatic  and  urgent,  they  are  not  more  real  than  those  of 
the  entire  State." 

The  legislatures  of  1913  and  1915  refused  to  allow  the 
people  of  Illinois  to  vote  on  this  vital  question  of  a  constitu- 
tional convention  preferring  the  "  piece-meal  plan."  What 
will  the  50th  General  Assembly  do  with  the  question? 
Like  Banquo's  ghost  "  it  will  not  down." 


CHAPTER  XVI 
ILLINOIS  MOVING  FORWARD 

Illinois  has  the  honor  to  be  the  first  State  east  of  the 
Mississippi  to  grant  the  ballot  to  women.  This  makes  the 
tenth  State  in  the  Union  to  give  "  votes  to  women."  Al- 
though not  full  suffrage,  it  grants  greatly  enlarged  powers 
to  women.  A  description  of  the  essential  parts  of  this 
famous  law  follows : 

"The  Woman  Suffrage  Law.  Since  1891  Illinois 
women  have  been  allowed  to  vote  for  all  school  officers 
except  State  and  County  Superintendent  of  Schools. 

"  The  Illinois  legislature  of  19 13  extended  to  women  the 
right  to  vote  for  the  following  named  officers :  Presiden- 
tial Electors,  Member  of  the  State  Board  of  Equalization, 
Clerk  of  the  Appellate  Court,  County  Surveyor,  Members 
of  Board  of  Assessors,  Members  of  Board  of  Review,  San- 
itary District  Trustees,  all  oMcers  of  cities,  villages  and 
tozvns  (except  police  magistrates).  Supervisor,  Town  Clerk, 
Assessor,  Collector  and  Highway  Commissioner  and  also 
the  right  to  vote  upon  all  questions  or  propositions  submit- 
ted to  a  vote  of  the  electors  of  any  municipality  or  other 
political  division  of  the  State. 

"  The  wording  of  the  law  is  such  that  some  officers,  like 
city  judges,  municipal  court  judges,  commissioners  in  cities 
under  a  commission  form  of  government,  forest  preserve 
president  and  commissioners,  park  commissioners  and  road 
district  clerk,  not  common  to  every  city,  district  or  town 

201 


202     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

are  really  covered  by  the  law,  because  such  officers  are  city 
officers  or  town  officers,  or  to  be  voted  for  by  *  legal  voters.' 

"  The  same  legislature  also  enacted  a  law  allowing 
women  to  vote  at  primaries  for  the  officers  named  above. 

"  Other  semi-official  persons  like  delegates  and  alternates 
to  national  nominating  conventions,  members  of  state  cen- 
tral committee,  precinct  and  ward  committees  may  also  be 
voted  for  by  women.  Women  may  hold  any  of  these 
offices  because  the  word  "  male  "  is  not  used  in  describing 
the  qualifications  of  the  officer.  Women  are  eligible  to  ap- 
pointive positions  and  deputyships. 

*'  The  women  privileged  to  vote  must  be  either  native 
born  or  naturalized  citizens  of  the  United  States,  having 
resided  in  the  State  one  year,  in  the  county  ninety  days  and 
in  the  election  district  thirty  days  next  preceding  any  elec- 
tion therein,  and  they  must  be  registered  in  the  same  man- 
ner in  which  men  are  registered. 

''  The  days  for  registration  precede  the  primaries  and 
elections  by  three  weeks  and  are  advertised  beforehand. 

"  The  city  and  school  elections  generally  occur  annually 
in  April  and  the  county  and  State  elections  biennially  in 
November,  though  special  elections  may  be  called,  for  other 
dates. 

''  The  statute  provides  for  separate  ballots  and  ballot 
boxes  in  order  that  the  women  may  not  vote  for  all  the 
officers  for  whom  men  vote.  There  is  a  similar  provision 
in  the  school  suffrage  law  of  1891,  as  the  legislature  has 
no  power  to  extend  suffrage  to  women  for  officers  men- 
tioned in  the  constitution.  Men  only  are  now  allowed  to 
vote  for  the  most  of  the  State  officers,  county  officers, 
judges,  members  of  congress  and  the  State  legislature.  To 
give  women  the  same  rights,  the  Illinois  constitution  must 


ILLINOIS  MOVING  FORWARD  203 

be  amended.  Such  an  amendment,  if  submitted  to  the  peo- 
ple by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of  the  19 17  legislature,  that  is, 
by  thirty- four  senators  and  one  hundred  and  two  repre- 
sentatives, and  then  voted  for  by  a  majority  of  all  vot- 
ing at  the  November,  1918,  election  would  become  a 
part  of  the  constitution  and  fully  enfranchise  Illinois 
women."  ^ 

State  Aid  Good  Roads  Law.  The  new  State  Aid 
Good  Roads  law,  in  effect  July  i,  191 3,  creates  a  new  State 
Highway  Department  of  five  commissioners,  two  of  w^hom 
must  be  engineers.  Their  term  is  six  years,  and  the  gov- 
ernor appoints  them.  They  will  supervise  all  roads  built 
with  State  aid,  prepare  a  uniform  plan  of  construction,  and 
a  road  map  for  the  State.  The  county  board  of  each  county 
must  appoint  a  county  superintendent  of  highways  for  six 
years  from  a  certified  list  submitted  by  the  State  commis- 
sion. This  superintendent  of  highways  will  oversee  the 
construction  of  the  State  roads  in  the  county,  advise  the 
State  commission  of  any  peculiar  local  conditions  in  that 
county,  and  act  as  a  State  agent  for  the  commission.  Cer- 
tain highways  in  the  county  are  designated  by  the  county 
board  as  "  State  Aid  roads,"  subject  to  the  approval  of  the 
State  commission,  which  is  responsible  for  making  the  vari- 
ous county  roads  fit  into  the  general  plan.  The  State  pays 
half  the  cost  of  construction  of  such  highways  and  also 
bears  the  entire  cost  of  keeping  them  in  repair. 

Each  township  or  road  district,  if  in  a  county  not  under 
township  organization,  decides  by  referendum  vote  whether 
it  wants  one  highway  commissioner  or  three  to  look  after 

1  This  material  is  taken  from  a  pamphlet,  "  The  A.  B.  C.  of  Woman's 
Suffrage  Rights  in  Illinois,"  by  Catharine  Waugh  McCulloch,  and  is 
used  thro'ififh  the  courtesy  of  the  author  who  is  also  author  of  the  law. 


204     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

its  country  roads,  except  the  State  Aid  roads. ^  This  is  the 
worst  feature  of  the  law,  because  the  county  ought  to  be 
the  center  of  local  management  as  well  as  construction. 
Not  more  than  twenty-five  per  cent,  of  the  total  mileage 
of  country  roads  in  any  county  can  be  State  Aid  roads. 
There  is  no  aid  for  roads  in  cities  or  villages. 

Funds.  The  funds  come  from  three  sources:  The 
State  automobile  tax,  which  now  amounts  to  $800,000,  an 
appropriation  from  the  General  Assembly,  and  the  county 
tax.  The  new  law  revives  a  poll  tax  of  one  to  two  dollars 
levied  on  all  men  between  twenty-one  and  fifty,  and  is  pay- 
able in  cash,  not  labor.  Enlarged  powers  of  taxation  and 
bond  issue  for  road  building  are  granted  the  counties. 
After  April  1914,  the  supervisor  in  each  town  becomes 
treasurer  of  the  Road  and  Bridge  Fund,  making  that  town 
office  of  more  importance. 

Cook  County  has  approximately  1,200  miles  of  country 
roads,  so  the  county  is  entitled  to  300  miles  of  State  Aid 
roads.  These  must  be  principal  highways,  and  connect 
with  the  State  roads  in  adjoining  counties. 

Western,  Milwaukee,  Archer  Avenues,  Halsted  and 
Twelfth  Streets  have  been  designated  by  the  county  board 
as  the  first  State  Aid  roads  in  Cook  County.  They  are 
being  made  of  concrete.^ 

This  law  is  the  first  sensible  attempt  to  "  pull  Illinois 

2  Roads  and  Bridges  Act,  1913,  sec.  158. 

3  There  has  already  been  planned  and  surveyed  a  great  transcon- 
tinental highway  of  concrete  running  from  New  York  to  San  Francisco, 
to  cost  approximately  $75,000,000.  The  cement  companies  of  the 
United  States  have  offered  to  furnish  the  cement  for  this  highway  at 
a  cost  to  the  companies  of  $10,000,000.  This  Lincoln  Memorial  highway 
will  run  along  the  south  boundary  of  Cook  County  and  pass  through 
Joliet  and  Dekalb. 


ILLINOIS  MOVING  FORWARD  205 

out  of  the  mud,"  and  is  full  of  promise  for  the  future. 
Farm  property  will  be  immensely  benefited  by  these  new 
State  Aid  roads,  and  indirectly,  the  cities  and  villages  will 
profit  by  better  transportation  for  all  farm  products.* 

Public  Utilities  Commission.  Two  bills  concerning 
public  service  companies  and  corporations  were  made  law 
by  the  Legislature  of  191 3.  A  bi-partisan  public  utilities 
commission  of  five  members  to  be  appointed  by  the  governor 
for  six  years  was  created.  The  salary  is  large  —  $10,000 
—  and  each  commissioner  must  devote  his  entire  time  to 
the  duties  of  his  of^ce  and  hold  no  other  oflfice  nor  engage 
in  any  other  business. 

All  public  utility  corporations  must  supply  the  commis-. 
sion  with  any  information  required,  and  their  books  can  be 
inspected  at  all  times.  The  law  says :  "  All  rates  and 
other  charges  made  by  any  public  utility  shall  be  just  and 
reasonable."  Every  unjust  or  unreasonable  charge  made 
is  declared  unlawful  and  prohibited.  If  the  language  of 
the  law  means  what  the  words  usually  mean,  then  the  public 
utilities  commission  can  absolutely  regulate  the  price  of 
gas,  electric  light,  ice,  and  water;  railroad,  express,  tele- 
graph, and  telephone  rates ;  warehouse  and  storage  charges, 
and  the  price  paid  for  oil  throughout  Illinois.  Certainly 
this  is  tremendous  power  to  place  in  the  hands  of  five  men, 
and  the  entire  value  of  the  law  rests  in  the.  type  of  men 
the  governor  appoints.  There  is  provision  for  an  appeal 
from  any  ruling  of  the  commission  to  the  circuit  court  of 

*  See  synopsis  of  the  State  Aid  Good  Roads  Law  prepared  by  the 
Roads  and  Bridges  committee  of  the  Cook  County  Board.  Also  Re- 
vised Roads  and  Bridges  Act,  in  effect  July  i,  1913.  Secure  this  act 
from  secretary  of  State,  Springfield,  or  from  your  county  board.  Get 
a  road  map  of  your  county  from  the  county  board  and  notice  the  State 
Aid  roads  on  it,  if  any  in  existence. 


2o6      ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

Sangamon  County  and  from  that  direct  to  the  State  su- 
preme court.      The  act  went  into  effect  January  i,  19 14.  ( i ) 

The  greatest  objection  to  the  law  comes  from  Chicago, 
because  there  is  no  clause  allowing  "  home  rule  "  for  that 
city,  or  control  of  its  own  great  public-service  companies. 
Chicago,  through  its  mayor  and  council,  has  unitedly  pro- 
tested against  such  a  great  increase  in  the  power  of  the 
State  at  the  expense  of  the  cities.  Some  control  and  regu- 
lation of  public  utilities  is  greatly  needed,  and  if  the  law 
is  firmly,  impartially,  and  wisely  administered,  both  the 
public-service  companies  and  the  people  at  large  will  bene- 
fit equally. 

Municipal  Ownership  of  Public  Utilities.  The  sec- 
ond law  is :  "  An  act  to  authorize  cities  to  acquire,  con- 
struct, own,  and  to  lease  or  operate  public  utilities  and  to 
provide  the  means  therefor."  (Session  Laws,  191 3,  pp. 
455"459-)  This  act,  in  force  July  i,  19 13,  gives  the  cities, 
villages,  and  towns  of  Illinois  the  right  of  municipal  owner- 
ship, operation  or  lease  of  their  street  car,  telegraph,  tele- 
phone lines;  water,  gas,  electric  light,  cold  storage,  and 
power  plants  of  every  kind ;  public  Avarehouses,  storage 
places,  docks,  and  to  fix  the  rates  and  charges  for  the  serv- 
ices rendered  by  such  public  utilities. 

How  must  a  city  proceed  under  the  act  if  it  wishes  to 
construct  and  operate  a  street-car  line  ?  First  an  ordinance 
must  be  passed  by  the  council  providing  for  municipal  con- 
struction and  ownership  of  such  street-car  line  and  provid- 
ing for  a  bond  issue  in  payment  of  same,  the  bonds  to  run 
not  longer  than  twenty  years.  This  ordinance  must  be 
approved  by  a  referendum  vote,  and  the  city  may  then  pro- 
ceed to  build  and  operate  the  new  municipal  car  line.  If 
a  car  line  was  already  in  existence,  and  the  franchise  about 


ILLINOIS  MOVING  FORWARD  207 

to  expire,  the  city  could  proceed  under  the  new  powers  to 
buy  the  privately  owned  car  line,  repair  it,  and  run  it.  The 
same  is  true  of  a  gas,  electric  light,  or  ice  plant,  a  ware- 
house, or  telephone  line.  If  the  private  company  will  not 
sell  its  property  at  a  fair  price,  then  the  city  may  condemn 
it  under  the  right  of  eminent  domain.  (2)  Instead  of  issu- 
ing bonds,  a  new  method  is  provided  in  the  act  to  pay  for 
such  municipally  owned  utilities.  If  authorized  by  the  vot- 
ers, the  council  may  issue  "  public  utility  certificates,"  to  be 
paid  for  out  of  the  profits  of  the  utility.  This  plan  has  the 
advantage  of  making  the  plant  pay  for  itself.  The  utility 
may  be  mortgaged  as  security  for  the  redemption  of  these 
certificates,  and  there  is  danger  of  foreclosure  of  this  mort- 
gage by  which  a  private  corporation  could  easily  get  pos- 
session of  a  plant  built  by  the  city,  run  it  for  twenty  years, 
and  reap  all  the  financial  rewards  of  the  experiment.  This 
possibility  ought  to  make  the  citizens  in  any  community 
keenly  alive  to  the  necessity  of  an  honest,  efificient,  city 
government  and  a  strictly  enforced  civil-service  law  for  all 
city  employees  before  they  attempt  municipal  ownership  of 
their  public  utilities.  The  act  gives  broader  powers  to 
Illinois  municipalities  than  any  recent  law. 

Municipal  Coliseum  Law.  The  Legislature  has  con- 
ferred the  right  on  cities  and  villages  under  500,000  popu- 
lation to  levy  a  tax  of  three  mills  to  build  and  one  mill  on 
the  dollar  to  maintain  a  public  coHseum  for  purposes  of  as- 
sembly and  recreation.  There  must  first  be  a  favorable 
referendum  vote  to  build  such  a  coliseum.  The  mayor,  or 
the  president  of  the  village,  appoints  three  directors  to 
serve  without  pay  for  three  years  to  have  entire  control 
of  the  use  of  the  coliseum  as  well  as  to  build  and  equip 
it.     Bonds  running  thirty  years  may  be  sold  to  pay  for  the 


2o8     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

building  and  payment  secured  by  a  mortgage  on  it.  Every 
public  municipal  coliseum  so  erected  is  for  the  '*  free  use 
and  benefit  of  the  people  for  lectures,  concerts,  public  as- 
semblies, and  all  other  educational  purposes,  and  for  free 
amusements  and  entertainments,"  subject  only  to  the  rules 
and  regulations  laid  down  by  the  three  directors.  The 
coliseum  is  to  be  used  "  for  the  greatest  benefit  to  the  great- 
est number,"  according  to  the  terms  of  this  very  progress- 
ive lav^.  In  small  rural  communities  a  suitable  place  for 
public  gatherings  is  hard  to  find.  Usually  the  church  or 
schoolhouse  is  the  only  available  place,  and  neither  build- 
ing is  large  enough  or  central  enough  to  serve  community 
needs.  A  public  municipal  coliseum  would  be  a  genuine 
community  and  social  center  and  fill  a  real  community  need. 
No  city  or  village  need  build  such  a  coliseum  unless  it  wants 
to,  for  the  law  provides  absolute  "  home  rule  "  in  the  mat- 
ter.     (Session  Laws,  1913,  pp.  142-145.) 

Legislative  Reference  Bureau.  Several  States,  par- 
ticularly Wisconsin  and  Massachusetts,  have  established 
such  a  bureau,  and  the  members  of  their  State  Legislatures 
have  found  it  a  great  service  in  drafting  bills  and  voting 
intelligently  on  bills  introduced.  Illinois  has  joined  this 
group  of  "  forward  looking  "  States,  and  provided  by  law 
for  such  a  reference  bureau.  The  duty  of  this  bureau  is 
to  "  collect,  catalogue,  and  index  laws,  periodicals,  docu- 
ments, and  digests  "  from  other  States  and  arrange  this 
valuable  material  in  the  most  convenient  form  for  the  use 
of  members  of  the  Legislature. 

The  reference  bureau  is  composed  of  the  governor,  who 
is  ex-officio  chairman,  and  the  chairman  of  the  committees 
on  judiciary  in  the  Senate  and  the  House.  This  commit- 
tee of  three  appoints  a  paid  secretary  who  gives  his  entire 


ILLINOIS  MOVING  FORWARD  209 

time  to  the  work  of  the  bureau  and  keeps  it  open  the  year 
round,  Sundays  and  legal  holidays  excepted.  (Session 
Laws,  1913,  pp.  391-392.) 

Workmen's  Compensation  Act.  "  A  business  that 
does  not  care  for  its  own  waste  is  a  parasite."  The  ap- 
palling number  of  deaths  and  accidents  to  working  men, 
women,  and  children  in  industries  led  Dr.  C.  R.  Henderson 
to  make  the  statement  quoted. 

The  present  workmen's  compensation  act  is  not  compul- 
sory. An  employer  may  voluntarily  accept  its  provisions, 
or  he  may  serve  notice  that  he  will  not  be  bound  by  its 
terms.  But  if  he  fails  to  file  such  notice,  he  is  obliged  to 
come  under  the  act.  An  Industrial  Board  of  three  mem- 
bers, appointed  by  the  governor  for  six  years,  is  created 
to  enforce  the  act.  This  board  is  composed  of  an  em- 
ployer, an  employee,  and  a  **  representative  citizen,"  who  is 
neither,  and  the  board  must  be  bi-partisan. 

The  amount  allowed  for  the  death  of  a  workman  incurred 
in  the  industry  is  not  less  than  $1,500  nor  more  than  $3,500. 
Lesser  amounts  are  paid  for  injuries  received.  In  case  of 
permanent  disability,  a  small  life  pension,  payable  monthly, 
is  provided.  Any  employer  can  withdraw  from  the  com- 
pensation plan  by  giving  notice  to  the  Industrial  Board  and 
his  own  workmen ;  but  such  withdrawal  does  not  affect  the 
pensions  for  which  he  is  already  liable.  The  workmen  em- 
ployed by  the  State,  county,  and  local  governments  are  also 
protected  by  the  law.  This  act  marks  a  cautious  begin- 
ning in  Illinois  toward  making  industry  "  carry  its  own 
waste." 

Mothers*  Pension  Fund.  This  new  law  takes  the 
place  of  the  carelessly  drawn  law  of  191 1  and  provides  a 
pension  of  $15  a  month  for  a  mother  with  one  child  under 


2IO     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

fourteen  years  old  and  $io  per  month  for  each  additional 
child  under  fourteen,  provided  no  relief  is  granted  for  any 
one  mother  to  exceed  $60  per  month.  Alien  mothers  who 
have  taken  first  papers  tov^ard  citizenship  are  eligible  as 
v^ell  as  mothers  who  are  citizens  of  United  States.  Both 
classes  of  pensioners  must  have  lived  three  years  in  the 
county  where  relief  is  sought.  If  the  father  is  living,  but 
permanently  unable  to  support  his  family,  upon  recommen- 
dation of  the  probation  officer  investigating  the  case,  the 
mother  and  children  may  still  obtain  the  pension.  Relief 
ceased  whenever  a  child  becomes  fourteen,  unless  that  child 
is  sick  or  has  become  crippled,  when  the  pension  may  be 
continued  until  the  said  child  is  sixteen. 

This  pension  is  paid  through  the  office  of  the  county 
agent.  The  county  board  levies  a  tax  of  three-tenths  of 
one  mill  on  the  dollar  annually  on  all  taxable  property  in 
the  county,  to  be  known  as  the  mothers'  pension  fund. 
The  judge  of  the  juvenile  court,  or  the  county  judge  in 
counties  having  no  juvenile  court,  is  charged  with  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  law,  and  there  are  special  probation 
officers  for  the  investigation  of  every  applicant  for  the 
fund.  (See  Juvenile  Court  in  Cook  County,  pp.  78-79,  for 
working  of  this  new  pension  act  in  that  county.) 

Illinois  Park  Commission.  Illinois  is  one  of  the  pio- 
neer States  in  the  Mississippi  Valley  to  create  a  State  park. 
The  Illinois  Park  Commission,  of  three  members,  serving 
without  pay,  was  appointed  by  the  governor  in  191 1  to 
acquire  sites  noted  for  their  history  or  natural  beauty  and 
maintain  the  same  as  State  parks.  "  The  historic  spot 
where  the  great  tribe  of  the  Illini  Indians  is  said  to  have 
made  their  last  stand,  and  the  site  of  the  French  fort  of 
Saint  Louis,"  have  been  purchased,  and  the  twelve  hundred 
acres  are  now  known  as  Starved  Rock  State  Park.     This 


ILLINOIS  MOVING  FORWARD  211 

beautiful  park  lies  on  the  Illinois  River  in  LaSalle  County. 
The  increasing  number  of  people  using  the  park  shows  how 
great  the  need  of  State-owned  parks  is.  Cottages  and 
camping  grounds  are  being  provided  and  every  effort  made 
by  the  Park  Commission  for  the  freest  possible  use  of  this 
great  out-door  playground.^ 

Child  Labor  Law.  Illinois  had  an  apology  for  such  a 
law  over  twenty  years  ago;  but  the  law  passed  in  1903  is 
the  one  of  which  the  people  are  proud,  and  justly,  because 
it  is  counted  one  of  the  best  child  labor  laws  in  the  country. 
No  child  under  fourteen  is  allowed  to  work  in  any  place 
where  liquor  is  sold,  and  there  is  a  long  list  of  prohibited 
occupations,  for  which  see  Revised  Statutes,  191 2,  chapter 
xlviii,  sections  20-2oa.  All  children  come  under  the  com- 
pulsory school  law  until  fourteen  years  old.  At  that  time 
age  and  school  certificates  are  required  from  parents  and  the 
school  superintendent.  Between  fourteen  and  sixteen  all 
hazardous  occupations  are  forbidden  and  every  such  child 
employed  in  permitted  occupations  must  be  registered  by  a 
wall  list  giving  name,  age,  and  residence,  which  is  posted  in 
the  establishment  where  he  is  employed.  The  child's  work- 
ing day  is  eight  hours  and  must  lie  between  seven  a.  m.  and 
six  p.  m.  The  State  factory  inspector  and  his  deputies  are 
charged  with  enforcing  the  child  labor  law  and  a  certain 
proportion  of  the  deputy  inspectors  must  be  women,  be- 
cause they  are  keener  in  protecting  the  rights  of  the  child. 
Every  child  must  be  able  to  read  simple  sentences  and  write 
legibly  before  a  work  certificate  is  granted.  A  fine  is  im- 
posed for  each  violation  of  the  child  labor  law.  Illinois 
protects  the  children  in  part  until  they  are  sixteen.     After 

'^  Report  Illinois  Park  Commission,  1912,  is  a  very  interesting  docu- 
ment and  will  repay  careful  reading. 


212     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

that  they  are  adults  in  the  legal  sense  and  must  take  their 
chances.  Is  it  wise  ?  Can  you  give  any  reasons  for  favor- 
ing a  longer  period  for  preparation  for  life  occupation? 

The  Local  Option  Law.  Since  1907  Illinois  has  had 
a  "  local  option  "  law  allowing  any  city,  village,  town,  pre- 
cinct, or  township  to  become  anti-saloon  territory  by  popu- 
lar vote  and  remain  ''  dry  "  for  eighteen  months,  when  the 
question  may  be  resubmitted  on  petition  of  a  small  number 
of  voters.  Under  the  terms  of  this  act,  over  half  the  State  of 
Illinois  is  "  dry  "  territory.  But  the  permission  to  reopen 
the  question  every  eighteen  months  keeps  the  battle  between 
the  "  personal  liberty  "  advocates  and  the  anti-saloon  people 
always  to  the  front.  A  decision  of  the  State  supreme  court 
declared  this  local  option  law  constitutional.  "  This  in- 
sures the  permanence  of  township  local  option  in  Illinois." 
The  county  local  option  law,  unfortunately,  was  repealed 
in  191 3 — another  evidence  of  the  constant  warfare  be- 
tween the  liquor  interests  and  the  temperance  sentiments 
of  the  people.  A  recent  Legislature  (1913)  passed  a  new 
"  dram-shop  law  "  prohibiting  the  sale  of  liquor  within  four 
miles  of  the  State  University;  but  the  residence  district 
bill  to  keep  saloons  out  of  such  districts  of  homes,  was  de- 
feated through  the  influence  of  the  United  Societies,  the 
powerful  liquor  organization  in  the  State.  Illinois  needs 
to  join  the  educational  campaign  being  carried  on  in  Massa- 
chusetts to  teach  the  economic  and  civic  waste  caused  by 
alcohol.  The  first  municipal  poster  on  this  subject  is 
recommended  for  thoughtful  consideration.  This  poster 
has  been  placed  in  every  park,  fire  and  police  station  in 
Cambridge,   Mass.,   by  order  of  the  mayor  and  council. 

Most  of  the  laws  described  in  this  chapter  were  passed  by 
the  last  two  Legislatures  and  prove  that  Illinois  is  genuinely 


ALCOHOL! 


THE  PUBLIC  THINKS:.** 

It  Is  only  Heavy  Orinklnii  that  harms. 

EXPERIMENTS  SHOW:— 

That  even  Moderate  DrinkM  Hurts  Health,  Lea|sens  Bffictoocy. 

THE  PUBLIC  THINKS:--. 

.  Alcohol  braces  us  for  hard  work  and  A|{aiiist  ffttiiJue. ' 

EXPERIMENTS  SHOW:— 

That     ALCOHOL     IN     NO    WAY     INCREASES    MUSCULAR 
STRENGTH  OR    ENDURANCE. 

ALCOHOL    LOWERS    VITAUTY;    ALCOHOL 
OPENS  THE  DOOR  TO  DISEASE 

Resolred,  at  the  Internatioaal  Congress  on  Tobercolosis,  1905,  to  combiae- 
the  Fight  Against  Alcohol  with  the  Struggle  Against  Tnbercnlosia. 

At  the  Massachnsetts  General  Hospital,  Boston,  the  use  of  Alcohol  as  a 
JSedicine  declined  77  per  cent,  in  eight  years. 

MoBt  Modera  HotpitAlt  shov  the  tuM  UnAncy. 

Alcohol  is  Responsible  for  Much  of  Onr  Insanity,  Much  of  Our  Poverty,  Much 
of  Onr  Crime.  OUR  PRISON  COMMISSIONERS  RIPORTXD  THAT 
95%  OF  THOSE  WHO  WENT  TO  PRISON  IN  1911  HAD  INTEM- 
PERATE HABITS. 

YET  THE  PUBLIC  SATS:— We  need  the  Revenue  from  Liqnof 

THE  PUBLIC  SHOULD  KNOW.— HOW  SMALL  IS  THE  REVENUE  com- 
pared with  the  Costs  of  Carrying  the  Wreckaie. 

YOUR  MONEY  SUPPORTS  THIS  WRECKAGE. 

YOUR  WILL  ALLOWS  IT. 

YOUR  INDIFFERENCE  ENDANGERS  YOUR  NATION. 

Commercialized  Vice  is  Promoted  throti^  Alcohol. 

CITIZENS,  THINK! 

ARRAYED  AGAINST  ALCOHOL  arc  ECONOMY.  SCIENCE.  EFFIQENCY.  HEALTH,  MORALITY. 

*»The  Very  Assets  of  a  Nation. 
—  The  Very  Soul  of  a  People. 


Used  by  Courtesy  of  The  Survey,  August  9,  1913 


First  Municipal  Poster  against  Alcoholism  in  the  United  States. 

Placed  by  authority  of  the  mayor  and  park  commissioners 

of  Cambridge,  Mass.,  in  all  parks  and  public  buildings. 


214     ACTUAL  GOVERNMENT  IN  ILLINOIS 

"  moving  forward  "  along  the  highway  of  progress.  If 
IlHnois  will  throw  aside  her  outgrown  State  constitution 
and  adopt  one  better  suited  to  the  needs  of  the  twentieth- 
century  the  centennial  birthday  of  the  State,  so  near  at 
hand,  will  witness  wonderful  progress  in  effective  govern^ 
ment.     [For  legislation  of  19 15  see  Appendix  C] 


APPENDIX  A 

Reference  List  of  Books  and  Pamphlets  valuable  for  study  of 
Actual  Government  in  Illinois. 

1.  Beard,    C.    A.    American    City    Government.     Century  Co. 

1912. 

2.  Boynton  and  Upton.     School  Civics  with  Civics  of  Illinois. 

Ginn  &  Co.     1910. 

3.  Campbell,  W.  H.    Illinois  History  Stories.    Appleton.     1910. 

4.  Currey,  J.  S.     History  of  Chicago.     S.  J.  Clarke  Co.     1912. 

5.  Debaters'  Handbook  Series.     H.  W.  Wilson  Co.,  Minneapo- 

lis.    1909. 

6.  Eastman,  F.  A.     Chicago  City  Manual  for  191 5.    Bureau  of 

Statistics.     Room  1005,  City  Hall. 

7.  Fairlie,    J.    A.     County   and    Town    Government   in   Illinois. 

Annals  American  Academy,  May,  19 13. 

8.  Fairlie,  J.  A.     Report  on  the  Taxation  and  Revenue  System 

of  Illinois.     1910.     Illinois  State  Journal  Co.,  Springfield. 

9.  Fairlie,  J.  A.    Report  of  loint  Legislation  Committee  of  4yth 

General  Assembly.     1913. 

10.  Forman,  S.  E.     The  American  Republic.    Century  Co.     1912. 

11.  Forman,  S.  E.    Advanced  Civics.     Century  Co.  Revised  ed. 

12.  Forman,    S.    E.     Essentials    in    Civil    Government.     Illinois 

Edition.    American  Book  Co.     1909. 

13.  Garner,  J.   W.     Government  in  the   United  States.     Illinois 

Edition.     American  Book  Co.     1915. 

14.  Greene,  E.  B.     The  Government  of  Illinois.    Macmillan  Co. 

1904. 

15.  Guitteau,  W.  B.     Government  and  Politics  in  United  States. 

Houghton  Mifflin  Co.     191 1. 

16.  Hurd,   H.   B.     Revised  Statutes  of  Illinois.     Chicago  Legal 

News  Co.     1915-1916. 

215 


2i6  APPENDIX  A 

17.  James    and    Sanford.     Government    in    State    and    Nation. 

Scribners.     1912. 

18.  James    and    Sanford.     Our    Government:   Local,   State    and 

National.     Illinois  Edition.     Scribners.     1903. 

19.  Judson,    Harry    Pratt.     Government    of    Illinois.     Maynard 

Co.     1900. 

20.  Mather,   Irving  F.     The  Making  of  Illinois.    A.   Flanagan. 

1900. 

21.  McCleary,   J.    T.    Studies   in    Civics.    American    Book    Co. 

1897. 

22.  Moody,  W.   D.     Wacker's  Manual  of  the  Plan  of  Chicago. 

Chicago  Plan  Commission.     1912. 

23.  Ostrogorski,   M.    Democracy  and  the  Party  System.     Mac- 

millan  Co.     191 1. 

24.  Smith,   G.   W.     Students'  History  of  Illinois.     Published  at 

Carbondale,  Illinois.     1907. 

25.  Session  Laws  of  Illinois  for  191 5.    Chicago  Legal  News  Co. 

26.  Thomas,  R.  W.    A  Manual  of  Debate.     American  Book  Co. 

1910. 

27.  Winchell,  S.  R.     A  Civic  Manual.     A.  Flanagan.     1910. 

28.  Wilcox,  D.  F.     Great  Cities  of  America.     (Chap.  IV  —  Chi- 

cago.)    Macmillan  Co.     1910. 


APPENDIX  B 

Valuable  Publications  of  Civic  Organizations  in  Chicago. 

I.     Chicago  Association  of  Commerce.     Reports  and  a  weekly 

paper  Commerce. 
II.     Chicago  Bureau  of  Public  Efficiency,  315  Plymouth  Court, 
Harris  S.  Keeler,  Director. 

1.  Park  Government  in  Illinois,    Dec,  191 1. 

2.  Growing   Cost  of  Elections  in   Chicago   and  Cook 

County.    Dec.  1912. 

3.  The  Voting  Machine  Contract.    Jan.,  1913. 

4.  The  County  Treasurer's  OHHce.     Nov.,  1913. 

5.  Nineteen  local   Governments  in   Chicago.    2nd   ed. 

Mar.,  1915. 

III.  City    Club.    315    Plymouth    Court.     George    E.    Hooker, 

Secretary. 
Bulletins. 

IV.  Illinois  Equal  Suffrage  Association.    603  Tower  Building. 

1.  A.  B.  C.  of  Woman's  Suffrage  in  Illinois. 

2.  Illinois  Laws  Concerning  Women. 

3.  Woman  Suffrage  Law  of  Illinois.     July,  1913. 
All  by  Catharine  Waugh  McCulloch. 

4.  What  Illinois  Women  Have  Accomplished  with  the 

Vote. 

5.  How  the  Suffrage  Law  Was  Saved  in  the  Illinois 

Legislature,  191 5. 
V.    Legislative  Voters'  League  of  Illinois.     10   So.  La   Salle 
St.,  Chicago. 

The  Assembly  Bulletin,  issued  monthly. 
VI.     Municipal  Voters'  League.     109  No.  Dearborn  St.,  Chicago. 
Annual  Reports  on  the  Chicago  Aldermen. 
217 


2i8  APPENDIX  B 

VII.    Woman's    City    Club.     ii6    So.    Michigan    Ave.    Amelia 
Sears,  Director. 

1.  A  Suggested  Solution  of  the  Garbage  Question. 

2.  Catechism    for    Women    Voters    in    Illinois.    Nov. 

1913. 

3.  Handbook  for  the  Women  Voters  of  Illinois.    Dec. 

1913- 

4.  Madam,  Who  Keeps  Your  House? 

5.  Mothering  a  Municipality. 

6.  The  Larger  Housekeeping. 

VIII.  Chicago  Normal  College.  History  and  Government  of  Chi- 
cago,  in  the  Educational  Bi-Monthly. 
IX.  Chicago  Public  Library,  Civics  room,  main  building. 
Package  Libraries  for  the  Study  of  Civics.  This 
magazine  material  is  for  circulation  and  can  be  had 
in  duplicate  for  class  use. 


APPENDIX  C 

Vital  Statistics  Law.  The  General  Assembly  of  191 5  gave 
the  baby  citizens  of  Illinois  their  right  to  a  legal  proof  of  birth 
and  descent,  so  important  in  matters  of  residence,  inheritance, 
voting,  obtaining  passports  or  work-certificates.  "  There  is  hardly 
a  relation  in  life  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave  where  a  record  of 
birth  may  not  prove  of  the  greatest  value."  The  law  went  into 
effect  Jan.  i,  1916,  and  provides  for  registration  districts  and  local 
registrars  who  must  be  city  or  town  clerks  where  possible,  or 
their  deputies.  All  births  must  be  registered  within  ten  days, 
under  penalty,  and  proper  certificates  containing  all  the  informa- 
tion required  by  the  United  States  Census  bureau  must  be  filed 
with  the  State  Board  of  Health  within  thirty  days.  The  executive 
secretary  of  the  State  Board  is  made  superintendent  of  birth  and 
death  registration  under  the  law.  All  burial  permits  are  issued 
and  recorded  by  the  same  authority  subject  to  any  sanitary 
regulations  made  by  the  State  Board  of  Health.  A  fee  of  .25  for 
each  birth  certificate  and  burial  permit  is  paid  the  registrar  up 
to  5,000,  and  .10  for  each  ensuing  certificate.  In  Chicago  the 
registration  is  left  with  the  health  department  but  all  original 
certificates  must  be  filed  in  Springfield  with  the  State  Board  of 
Health.  An  annual  report  of  births  and  deaths  must  be  published 
by  the  State  Board  with  such  data  as  "  will  serve  to  promote  public 
health  and  the  general  welfare  of  the  citizens  of  the  state." 

Commitment  Law  for  the  Feeble-minded  went  into  effect  July 
I,  191 5,  after  a  campaign  of  thirty  years  to  secure  it.  The  object 
as  stated  in  the  title  is,  "  to  better  provide  for  the  care  and 
detention  of  feeble-minded  persons,"  and  within  the  first  six  months 
of  its  operation  150  such  persons  were  committed  for  life  to  the 
Lincoln  State  School  and  Colony.  The  law  provides  for  a  com- 
mission of  three  persons  "  two  of  whom  must  be  qualified  phy- 
sicians—  or  one  may  be  a  qualified  psychologist  —  to  be  selected 

219 


220  APPENDIX  C 

by  the  judge  on  account  of  their  known  competency  and  in- 
tegrity," to  make  a  careful  examination  of  the  person  thought  to 
be  subnormal  and  report  their  findings  to  the  judge.  Thereupon 
the  person  declared  feeble-minded  may  be  committed  for  permanent 
care  to  a  suitable  private  or  public  institution  or  colony,  to  the 
great  benefit  of  the  community  and  the  individual  involved.  This 
is  the  first  time  psychology  has  ever  been  recognized  by  law. 
This  commitment  law  has  attracted  general  attention  throughout 
United  States  and  copies  have  been  requested  from  every  section 
of  the  country.  "  Illinois  is  the  first  state  to  enact  and  put  into 
practical  operation  so  comprehensive  a  plan  for  the  permanent 
segregation  of  its  mentally  deficient."  ^ 

Consolidation  Law  for  Chicago.  Public  opinion  in  Chicago 
is  slowly  but  surely  moving  toward  consolidation  of  the  22  local 
governments  within  the  city  and  county  limits  as  the  only  certain 
remedy  for  numerous  evils  in  the  body  politic,  especially  the 
burdens  due  to  nearly  four  hundred  separate  taxing  bodies  within 
Chicago  and  Cook  County.  Various  plans  to  get  rid  of  useless 
and  duplicated  offices  in  city,  county,  township,  sanitary  and  park 
districts  are  being  suggested  from  several  sources. 

The  General  Assembly  of  191 5  passed  an  act  providing  one 
method,  although  a  clumsy  one,  to  bring  about  this  greatly  needed 
reform.  The  act  is  very  elaborate  and  includes  a  multitude  of 
detail  but  fails  to  strike  at  the  root  of  the  matter.  If  adopted 
it  would  give  the  city  council  absolute  control  over  the  public 
library,  the  house  of  correction,  the  parks  and  townships  lying 
within  Chicago.  But  the  great  taxing  bodies  of  the  county,  sani- 
tary district,  municipal  tuberculosis  sanitarium  and  board  of  edu- 
cation are  not  touched  by  the  act.  This  law  can  be  submitted 
to  the  legal  voters  by  ordinance  of  the  city  council,  at  any  general 
election  or  by  petition  signed  by  a  certain  per  cent,  of  the  voters. 
For  adoption  a  majority  of  all  the  votes  cast  at  such  election  is 
necessary  and  also  "  a  majority  in  two  or  more  of  the  local  gov- 
ernments to  be  consolidated."  This  makes  possible  "piece  meal 
consolidation,"  and  will  not  do  violence  to  any  of  the  local  gov- 

1  The  Institution  Quarterly,  June  30,  1916,  p.  2)2>-  Used  through  the 
courtesy  of  A.  L.  Bowen,  secretary.  State  Charities  Commission.  The 
members  of  this  commission  succeeded  in  getting  this  much-needed  law 
through  the  legislature. 


APPENDIX  C  221 

ernments  concerned.  But  if  Chicago  depends  solely  on  this  law, 
she  will  wait  another  century  to  get  actual  consolidation. 

The  garbage  problem  in  cities  under  100,000  can  now  be  dealt 
with  in  a  scientific  manner  if  the  councils  in  such  cities  use  their 
new  power  to  levy  a  special  tax  of  two  mills  on  the  dollar  to 
provide  for  the  collection  and  disposal  of  garbage.  The  method, 
whether  by  reduction  or  incineration,  is  left  entirely  to  the  de- 
ci^sion  of  each  community. 

The  49th  General  Assembly  has  to  its  credit  a  county  tuberculo- 
sis law  allowing  county  boards  in  all  the  counties  of  the  state  to 
levy  a  three-mill  tax  to  provide  a  fund  "  to  erect  and  maintain 
a  county  tuberculosis  sanitarium "  if  the  voters  so  order  on  a 
referendum  vote  at  any  general  election. 


APPENDIX  D 

(The   following   notes   are    referred   to    by    number   in   the   cor- 
responding chapters  of  the  text) 

CHAPTER  I 

(i)     A  lack  of  funds  caused  the  office  to  be  abolished  in  191 5. 

(2)  Only  the  most  important  officials,  as  heads  of  departments 

or  the  "  Mayor's  Cabinet."     Officials  are  not  employees. 

(3)  H.  A.  Toulmin,  "  The  City  Manager,"  Appleton  &  Co.,  is  an 

excellent  recent  volume  on  this  topic. 

CHAPTER  n 

(i)     Chicago  City  Manual,  19 15,  p.  135. 

(2)  Defeated  Apr.  7,  1914. 

(3)  The  time  of  regular  council  meetings  was  changed   from 

evening  to  afternoon  by  an  ordinance  passed  Oct.  10, 
1916. 

(4)  For  non-partizan  organization  of  the  committees  see  note 

28,  pp.  224-25,  Appendix  D. 

(5)  Only  true  when  Mayor  and  chairman  are  from  the  same 

political  party.  1916,  Mayor  Thompson,  republican; 
chairman  Richert,  democrat. 

(6)  Appropriations  from  the  Water  Fund  must  always  be  added 

to  estimates  in  the  budget  to  find  the  total  appropriations 
for  that  year.     Note  amount  given  for  1916,  p.  19. 

(7)  Mayor  Thompson  issued  a  proclamation  Oct.  4,  1915,  order- 

ing the  saloons  of  Chicago  to  be  closed  on  Sunday  ac- 
cording to  the  State  law  which  had  been  a  dead  letter 
for  many  years.     Order  went  into  effect  Oct.  10,  19 15. 

(8)  Only  two  departments,  Public  Welfare  and  Public  Service, 

have  been  added  since  1913.     See  chart,  p.  25. 

(9)  Four  year  term  defeated  Apr.  7,  1914. 

222 


APPENDIX  D  223 

(10)  Department  of  Public  Service  was  created  by  Council,  Mar. 

30,  19 14.  It  includes  bureaus  of  transportation,  gas, 
telephone,  electric  and  engineering. 

(11)  The  new  Municipal  Pier,  extending  three  quarters  of  a  mile 

into  the  lake  near  Chicago  Avenue,  and  containing  ample 
facilities  for  all  kinds  of  public  recreation  as  well  as 
docking  privileges  for  lake  boats,  was  opened  in  June, 
1916.  It  is  administered  by  the  Harbor  Board  but  under 
the  commissioner  of  public  works.  The  average  daily 
attendance  for  July,  19 16,  was  over  50,000  and  for  Sun- 
days, over  250,000.  These  figures  show  the  great  pos- 
sibilities of  the  pier  for  serving  the  people. 

(12)  The  name  has  been  changed  to  Chicago  and  Cook  County 

School  for  Boys:  located  just  outside  the  city  limits  on 
part  of  the  Gage  farm.  Buildings  and  site  are  provided 
by  the  city;  Cook  County  provides  the  maintenance;  the 
Chicago  Board  of  Education  provides  the  teachers  and 
pays  their  salaries.  It  was  dedicated  Chicago  Day,  Oct. 
9,  1916. 

(13)  A  boys'  court  to  try  offenders  between  17  and  21  years  old 

was  organized  in  19 15.  It  tries  boys  who  are  beyond 
the  Juvenile  Court  age  yet  ought  not  to  be  thrown  with 
hardened  criminals.  A  Night  Court  is  a  recent  addi- 
tion and  is  proving  very  successful. 

(14)  Four  infant  welfare   stations  are  now  maintained  in  the 

congested  districts. 

(15)  Clean  Living,  a  monthly  magazine  on  health,  has  recently 

been  added  to  their  preventive  agencies. 

(16)  Required  by  act  of  legislature  beginning  Jan.  i,  1916. 

(17)  Half  a  dozen  comfort  stations  have  at  last  been  opened  after 

a  long  campaign  to  secure  these  public  conveniences. 
They  are  under  the  bureau  of  the  health  department. 

(18)  Under  the  auspices  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  twenty  minute  talks 

on  hygiene  are  given  during  the  winter  months  in  the 
noon  hour  in  car  shops,  factories  and  industrial  plants 
all  over  Chicago.  These  talks  are  part  of  the  educa- 
tional work  of  the  health  department  and  are  given  by 
its  members. 


224  APPENDIX  D 

(19)  Dr.  John  Dill  Roberston  was  appointed  health  commissioner, 

April,  1915,  by  Mayor  William  Hale  Thompson. 

(20)  Dr.  Drake  is  now  Secretary  of  the  State  Board  of  Health. 

Appointed  by  Governor  Dunne,  Apr.  10,  19 14. 

(21)  Fire  Prevention  School  Reader,  Sept.,  1915,  issued  by  state 

fire  marshal  department  gives  good  material  on  this  im- 
portant subject. 

(22)  The  official  title  is  Chicago  Normal  College.     It  is  located 

on  the  South  side  and  the  Normal  furnishes  about  half 
of  the  teachers  in  the  Chicago  schools. 

(23)  Henry  E.  Legler,  appointed  Oct.  9,  1909. 

(24)  Since  the  map  opposite  p.  47  was  prepared,  four  park  dis- 

tricts have  been  added  to  the  number  of  park  govern- 
ments in  Chicago,  making  16  in  all. 

(25)  An  act  of  the  legislature,  approved  June  29,  191 5,  provides 

for  such  consolidation  of  local  governments  in  Chicago 
whenever  the  legal  voters  of  the  city  so  order  at  any 
election.  The  difficulty  is  to  get  the  proposition  on  the 
ballot. 

(26)  Percentages  are  for  1913,  but  practically  true  for  1916. 

(27)  Progress  is  being  made  toward  a  genuinely  scientific  solu- 

tion of  this  ancient  problem.  The  Municipal  Reduction 
plant  is  being  rebuilt  and  soon  will  be  one  of  the  best  in 
United  States.  An  up-to-date  garbage  crematory  has 
been  built  and  is  operated  by  convict  labor  at  the  Bride- 
well. A  modern  incinerator  is  being  built  at  Ninety-fifth 
St.  and  new  garbage  boxes,  trucks  and  loading  stations 
are  being  installed  over  the  entire  city. 

NON-PARTIZAN  ORGANIZATION  OF  COUNCIL 
COMMITTEES 

(28)  Since  1902,  the  Chicago  Council  has  been  organized  on  a 

non-partizan  basis  of  honesty  and  fitness.  Council  com- 
mittees are  made  up  by  a  committee  on  committees  of 
six  aldermen,  two  from  each  side  of  the  city  to  repre- 
sent the  two  leading  parties.  This  committee  on  com- 
mittees is  elected  in  March  by  a  caucus  of  the  better 
aldermen.    This  caucus  is  called  by  the  Municipal  Voters 


APPENDIX  D  225 

League  and  the  committee  lists  submitted  by  the  com- 
mittee on  committees  are  reported  to  the  new  council 
after  the  April  election.  For  fourteen  years  the  council 
has  approved  these  lists.  The  Municipal  Voters  League 
thus  assumes  the  burden,  which  individual  aldermen  would 
naturally  shrink  from  assuming,  of  excluding  the  so- 
called  "  gray  wolf "  element  from  a  voice  in  making  up 
these  council  committees.  The  great  bulk  of  the  work 
of  the  council  is  done  in  the  committees.  The  Municipal 
Voters  League  is  a  non-partizan  league  of  private  citizens 
of  twenty  years'  standing  and  the  improved  quality  of 
the  Council  is  largely  due  to  its  efforts. 
(Above  statement  is  from  executive  secretary  of  the  league.) 

CHAPTER  III 

(1)  By  annexation  the  Northwestern  part  of  Evanston  township 

to  the  City  of  Evanston  in  1914,  the  whole  of  that  town- 
ship is  now  included  in  Chicago.  The  Southeastern  cor- 
ner of  Ridgeville  township  has  been  annexed  to  Chicago. 
The  remainder  of  Ridgeville  township  since  July  17,  1916, 
has  been  made  the  "Town  of  the  City  of  Evanston"  to 
provide  a  consolidated  township  for  that  city. 

CHAPTER  IV 
(i)  County  commissioners  are  ex  officio  also  commissioners  of 
the  Forest  Preserve  District  of  Cook  County,  created 
by  an  act  of  legislature,  1913,  and  approved  by  referendum 
vote,  Nov.  3,  1914.  A  bond  issue  of  $1,000,000  was  voted 
by  the  commissioners  Mar.  5,  1915,  for  the  purchase  of 
forest  districts. 

(2)  Change  in  party  control  caused  her  resignation,  Dec.  22, 

1914,  in  spite  of  notable  work  on  the  commission. 

(3)  Appropriations  for  1916,  $13,182,000.     Smaller  building  op- 

erations account  for  the  decrease ;  but  all  department  ap- 
propriations are  larger. 

(4)  Legislature    increased   salary   to   $12,000,    but   suit   by   the 

county  to  prevent  payment  of  the  increase  is  now  before 
the  State  Supreme  Court. 


226  APPENDIX  D 

(5)  The  Juvenile  Psychopathic  Institute  under  Dr.  W.  C.  Healy 

conducts  all  these  physical  examinations  and  also  tests 
any  child  thought  to  be  subnormal. 

(6)  The  new  building  was  dedicated  Mar.  4,  1915. 

(7)  By  amendment  to  this  law  (July  i,  1915),  alien  widows  who 

have  taken  first  citizenship  papers  are  eligible  for  a 
pension  for  their  children  under  14,  born  in  this  country. 
This  change  in  the  law  has  greatly  increased  the  number 
of  pensioners  in  Cook  County. 

(8)  According  to  the  report  of  the  chief  probation  officer,  Joel 

D.  Hunter,  6,116  boys  and  girls  were  brought  before  the 
Juvenile  Court  during  191 5. 

(9)  Established  1915  with  consulting  staff  of  three  alienists  who 

serve  without  pay. 
(10)     To  this  large  sum  must  be  added  the  $27,400  appropriated  by 
the  county  board  for  outdoor  relief  in  the  country  towns. 

CHAPTER  V 
(i)     A  new  assessment  was  made  in  1915. 

(2)  After  1916,  the  county  collector  cannot  retain  these  fees  but 

must  turn  them  over  to  the  county.     (See  pp.  73-74.) 

(3)  An  amendment  to  the  state  constitution  giving  the  legisla- 

ture power  to  reduce  and  simplify  the  processes  of  taxa- 
tion was  voted  on  favorably  on  Nov.  7,  1916. 

(4)  The  new  "  Town  of  the  City  of  Evanston  "  was  created  by 

the  County  Board,  July  17,  1916,  and  leaves  all  that  re- 
mains of  the  Town  of  Ridgeville  in  Chicago. 

(5)  The  district  described  here   is  popularly  known  as  "the 

loop."  It  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  bits  of  property  in 
the  United  States.  The  tax  rates,  191 5,  for  Town  of 
South  Chicago  containing  the  loop: 

State  .55 

County  .59 

Sanitary  .42 

City  1.82 

School  1.81 

Park  .41 

Total  rate,  $S-6o 


APPENDIX  D  227 

CHAPTER  VI 

(i)  In  Chicago,  raised  19 15  to  $7  for  each  regular  election  day 
and  $5  for  revision  days,  but  the  increase  is  being  con- 
tested in  the  courts.    Granted,  Oct.,  19 16. 

(2)  State  convention  of  each  party  also  nominates  the  presi- 
dential electors  for  their  party. 

CHAPTER  VII 

(1)  The  panel,  or  required  number  of  jurors,  either  grand  or 

petit,  is  obtained  in  Cook  County  from  the  jury  com- 
missioners, p.  82. 

(2)  The  wonderful  Fall  River  road  and  High  Drive  in  Estes 

Park,  Colo.,  are  examples  of  convict-built  roads  of  which 
Colorado  is  justly  proud. 

CHAPTER  IX 

(1)  There  has  been  no  new  reapportionment  since  1901  owing  to 

political  influence  in  the  Legislature.     See  p.  99. 

(2)  Session  Laws,  19 15,  p.  464. 

(3)  The   49th   General   Assembly,    1915,  was  dead  locked  six 

weeks  over  the  election  of  a  speaker.     (Pp.  149-150.) 

(4)  Lawrence  Y.  Sherman  is  the  first  U.  S.  Senator  chosen  by 

popular  vote  in  Illinois.  He  was  reelected  for  the  full 
six  year  term  in  Nov.,  1914.  Term  is  from  Mar.  4,  1915, 
to  Mar.  4,  1921.  Senator  Lewis'  term  expires  Mar.  4, 
1919. 

(5)  "  When  the  State  Pays  "  and  "  Padding  the  Payrolls,"  the 

Assembly  Bulletins  issued  by  the  Legislative  Voters 
League,  vol.  9,  Nos.  24-25,  are  the  best  brief  statements 
of  such  facts  for  the  49th  General  Assembly.  Every 
civics  pupil  should  make  use  of  these  valuable  little 
bulletins  of  the  L.  V.  L.  issued  monthly. 

(6)  The  new  law  gave  the  Public  Utilities  Commission  power 

to  prohibit  passes  and  they  promptly  forbade  them  within 
the  state,  to  the  joy  of  the  railroads  and  the  great  dis- 
gust of  the  legislators. 

(7)  The  49th  General  Assembly,  191 5,  under  the  leadership  of 

Speaker  Shanahan  reduced  the  number  of  standing  com- 


228  APPENDIX  D 

mittees  from  dy  to  33  by  altering  the  ancient  house  rules 
—  a  great  gain  toward  more  efficient  law  making. 

(8)  A  salary  raise  to  $3,500  was  passed  in  the  session  of  1915. 

See  note  p.  143  on  anti-pass  ruling. 

(9)  Legislature   of   ipi^-i6.     The   three   sessions    of   the   49th 

General  Assembly  furnish  a  number  of  illustrations  of 
the  archaic  system  under  which  the  Legislature  of  Illi- 
nois is  organized.  There  were  three  sessions,  one  regu- 
lar and  two  special,  the  latter  made  necessary  by  the 
careless  wording  of  some  of  the  large  appropriation  bills 
that  had  been  "  railroaded  "  through  the  last  day  of  the 
session  and  afterward  declared  unconstitutional  by  the 
Supreme  Court.  The  regular  session  in  January  began 
with  the  customary  deadlock  in  the  House  over  the  elec- 
tion of  a  speaker.  This  deadlock  lasted  six  weeks  owing 
to  the  old  struggle  between  the  "  wets  and  drys,"  neither 
side  being  willing  to  yield  any  point  in  this  legislative 
duel  and  neither  party  seeming  to  consider  the  rights  of 
their  employers  and  paymaster,  the  people  of  Illinois, 
to  their  services  as  legislators.  Late  in  February  the 
deadlock  was  broken  by  the  election  of  a  so-called  "  wet " 
candidate,  but  a  man  with  a  reputation  for  justice  and 
impartiality  —  a  man  respected  by  both  sides.  Under  his 
leadership  the  ancient  rules  of  the  House  were  amended 
to  reduce  the  seventy  standing  committees  to  thirty-three 
and  the  House  payroll  for  janitors,  watchmen  and  clerks 
was  cut  down  to  the  smallest  amount  in  ten  years.  But 
the  Senate  "  padded  its  payroll "  with  an  unusual  num- 
ber of  "  legless  janitors  and  armless  stenographers  "  un- 
til all  the  House  economy  was  fruitless  for  the  taxpayers. 
The  special  sessions,  called  by  the  governor  in  November 
and  January,  corrected  their  earlier  blunders  and  also  ap- 
propriated more  money.  The  legislative  "  grist "  in  the 
shape  of  bills  for  the  three  sessions  included  some  long- 
sought  reforms.  Among  them  was  a  law  for  the  regis- 
tration of  births  and  deaths ;  for  permanent  state  care  for 
the  feeble-minded;  a  fixed  salary  for  the  treasurer  of 
Cook  County,  all  fees  and  interest  to  go  to  the  county;  a 


APPENDIX  D  229 

large  number  of  park-and-playground  bills  and  a  "  piece- 
meal "  consolidation  law  for  Chicago  local  governments. 
Appropriations  totaled  $46,000,000,  yet  Illinois  has  no  bal- 
ance sheet.  "  Probably  no  state  in  the  Union  has  appro- 
priated money  for  government  expenses  with  greater 
carelessness  than  has  Illinois."  But  increasing  tax  rates 
are  leading  citizens  to  inquire  "  Where  the  money  goes 
when  the  state  pays."  The  50th  session  of  the  General 
Assembly  [Jan.,  1917]  has  organized  without  the  cus- 
tomary deadlock  and  elected  a  speaker  of  the  House  and 
president  pro  tern  of  the  Senate  promptly  for  the  first 
time  in  a  dozen  years.  The  prospects  are  bright  for  the 
submission  to  the  voters  of  Illinois  of  a  constitutional 
convention  resolution  within  two  years.  The  majority 
party  in  the  Legislature  and  the  newly  elected  governor 
have  pledged  an  "  efficiency  program  "  through  reorgan- 
ization of  the  state  departments  and  revision  of  the 
archaic  rules  of  procedure  in  both  houses. 

CHAPTER  X 
(i)     See  pp.  141-142  for  description  of  this  deadlock. 
(2)     The  state  fire  marshal's  department  is  doing  good  educa- 
tional work  in  fire  prevention.     (P.  37.) 

CHAPTER  XII 
(i)     This  has  been  done  in  part  through  an  amendment  of  1906 
to  the  state  constitution. 

(2)  "The  right  of  eminent  domain  is  the  right  of  the  public  to 

take  private  property  for  public  use  if  just  compensa- 
tion is  given  the  owner." 

(3)  Ch.  Ill,  towns  and  townships  in  Illinois. 

CHAPTER  XIII 

(1)  The  reports  for  1912  for  Illinois  and  Chicago  show  better 

work  in  general  than  the  more  recent  ones.  1912  was 
a  "  reform  year  "  along  most  lines  of  government  work. 

(2)  This  record  has  been  sadly  marred  owing  to  the  change  in 

administration    (April,    191 5)    and   the   attempt  to  care 


230  APPENDIX  D 

for  all  "  deserving  friends "  of  the  new  mayor  on  the 
city  pay-rolls. 

(3)  Miss  Anna  E.  Nicholes,  Secretary  of  the  commission  ap- 

pointed by  A.  A.  McCormick,  Feb.  i,  1913,  resigned 
Dec.  22,  1914. 

(4)  Every  citizen  ought  to  study  this  report. 

(5)  These  practical  tests,  made  in  1913,  were  begun  under  the 

presidency  of  W.  B.  Moulton  whose  able  work  on  the 
civil-service  commission  set  a  high  standard  for  the 
state.  Recent  political  changes  have  weakened  the  work 
of  the  present  commission. 

CHAPTER  XIV 

(1)  The  board  of  administration  has  established  an  eight-hour 

day  for  all  the  employees,  nurses  and  attendants  in  all 
state  charitable  institutions ;  also  "  equal  pay  for  equal 
work  "  regardless  of  sex.  The  board  has  been  a  pioneer 
in  these  matters. 

(2)  The  Institution  Quarterly  is  the  official  organ  of  the  Public 

Charity  Service  of  Illinois  and  furnishes  the  best,  most 
recent  information  on  the  service. 

(3)  Located  on  the  Rock  River  near  Dixon.     Seven  buildings 

are  under  construction.     To  be  opened  in  the  fall  of  1916. 

(4)  A  new  law  for  the  "  care  and  detention  of  feeble-minded  " 

went  into  effect  July  i,  1915.  This  law  now  recognizes 
mental  defectives  as  wards  of  the  state.  See  pp.  79-80 
under  Juvenile  Court  for  Cook  County. 

(5)  Since  Jan.  i,  1916,  a  pension  of  $150  a  year  is  paid  out  of 

the  county  treasury  to  all  blind  adults  without  other 
income. 

CHAPTER  XV 

(1)  The  number  is  constantly  increasing  owing  to  the  creation 

of  new  park  districts. 

CHAPTER  XVI 
(i)     For  results  of  the  law  see  reports  of  \ie  Public  Utilities 
commission. 

(2)  See  p.  170  for  definition  and  explanation  of  eminent  domain. 

(3)  See  Appendix  C, 


INDEX 


"After-supper"  classes,  44. 

Aldermen,  salary,  6 ;  term,  6.  See 
Chicago  and  City  Council. 

Amendment  Illinois  constitution, 
198-200,  202,  203. 

American  City  Government,  quot- 
ed, 4,  43- 

Assessor,  county,  90,  91 ;  town,  58, 

91,  92,  93. 
Assessment  property,  90-93. 
Attorney,  city,  13. 
Attorney  general,  157. 
Auditor  of  public  accounts,  157. 
Australian  ballot.    See  ballot. 

Backyard  proverbs,  34,  35. 
Ballot,     description     of,     104-105 ; 

"little,"  108;  marking,  105-106; 

need  of  shorter,  no;  specimen, 

104,  105. 
Bartelme,  Miss  Mary  E.,  78. 
Beaconsfield,  Lord,  quoted,  29. 
Beard,  Chas.  A.,  quoted,  3-4,  43. 
Bills,     145-148;     enacting     clause, 

147- 

Blind,  care  for,  194. 

Board  of,  assessors,  90,  91,  182; 
education,  42,  169-170;  equaliza- 
tion, 88;  local  improvements,  24, 
26;  prison  industries,  118-119; 
registry,  101-102 ;  review,  92,  93 ; 
school  directors,  171 ;  visitors, 
191. 

Bryce,  quoted,  14. 

Bureau  of  hospitals,  baths,  lodg- 
ing-house, 32;  legislative  refer- 
ence, 208 ;  vagrancy,  39 ;  vital 
.  statistics,  29-32 ;  vocational  su- 
pervision, 44,  45. 


Cairo,  7,  56,  161. 
Camera  squad,  14. 


Capital  punishment,  118. 

Catherwood,  Robert,  quoted,  i8a- 
181 ;  181-183,  184. 

Change  of  venue,  59. 

Character  —  investigation  depart- 
ment,  178-179. 

Charity  service  of  Cook  County, 
83-86. 

Chart,  Government  of  Chicago, 
25 ;  Government  of  Cook 
County,  87. 

Chester,  penitentiary  at,  118. 

Chicago,  aldermen  of,  18,  19; 
board  of  local  improvements, 
24,  26;  Bridewell,  27;  budget, 
20;  business  agent,  24;  city 
clerk,  23,  24;  city  collector,  2;^, 
26;  City  Hall,  52,  68;  city  phy- 
sician, 32;  city  treasurer,  24; 
civil-service  commission,  23,  177- 
179;  civic  creed,  16;  comptrol- 
ler, 26;  commissioner  public 
works,  26,  27;  Council,  18-20; 
custodian  lost  property,  41-42; 
dead  animals  removed  in,  32- 
ZZ)  early  history  of,  16,  17;  fire 
department,  36-37;  garbage,  26, 
50;  health  department,  29-32; 
"  home  rule  "  for,  206 ;  house  of 
correction,  27;  law  department, 
24;  mayor,  term,  20,  powers  of, 
18,  20,  22,  23,  salary,  20;  mean- 
ing of,  17,'  parks,  46-49;  police 
department,  38-41 ;  population, 
17,  70;  problems  of,  49^50;  pub- 
lic library,  45-46;  sanitary  dis- 
trict, 50-53;  school  system,  42- 
45 ;  school  lands,  42,  43,  166. 

Chicago  Bureau  of  Public  Ef- 
ficiency, 16,  23,  25,  46,  47,  51, 
69,  74,  87,  no,  112. 

Chicago  City  Manual,  16,  41. 


231 


-3- 


INDEX 


Chicago  Fire,  zl,  I34»  136. 
Chicago  Historical  Society,  16. 
Chicago's  Pocketbook,  21, 
Chicago  Railways  Company,  42. 
Chicago  State  Hospital,  192, 
Chief  of  police,  6,  12,  38. 
Child  Labor  Law,  211-212. 
Cities,  officers  of,  5;  organization 

of,  5  and  Villages  Act,  4,  5,  10, 

18;   City  civil  service,   177-179; 

City   courts,   8    {^See   Municipal 

Courts). 
City,  attorney,   13;  council,  6,   10, 

18;    government,   outline   of,   9- 

13 ;  managf^r,  7,  8. 
Civil-service    commission,    6,    12, 

176,   179-180;   Chicago,  177-179; 

Cook  County,  179,  184. 
Civil    service,    history    of    move- 
ment, 176-177;  law,  52,  196,  207; 

meaning  of,  176. 
Clerk,  city,   lo-ii;  county,  73,  75, 

92,  94,  95 ;  of  elections,  102,  105, 

107;  town,  58. 
Clerks  of  the  courts,  77. 
Cleveland,  Grover,  quoted,  175. 
Coles,  Gov.  Edward,  135. 
Collector,  city,  6,   11,  90;   county, 

73-74,  95,  96;  town,  58,  95- 
Comerford,  Frank  D.,  140-141. 
Commissioner  public  works,  6,  11, 

26,  27;  health,  6,  12. 
Commission  plan  city  government, 

6. 
Committee  men,  104. 
Common  law,  160. 
Comptroller,  6,  11,  26,  73. 
Compulsory   school   law,   172,  211. 
Congressional    townships,    54,    61, 

169. 
Constable,  59;   Differences  police- 
man and,  60. 
Constitution      of      1870,      Illinois 

quoted,  147,  151,  159,  165. 
Constitutional  convention,  198,  200. 
Convergence  of  meridians,  62,  63. 
Convict  labor,  120. 
Cook  County,  area,  68;  board,  66, 

70-71 ;    board    of    visitors,    86 ; 

budget,  72;  charity  service,  83- 

86;  clerk,  73,  94,  95;  comptrol- 


ler, 73;  coroner,  74-75;  court- 
house, 68;  government  of,  70- 
76;  hospital,  83;  infirmary,  58, 
83;  judge,  80,  85,  loi ;  juvenile 
court,  77-78;  Juvenile  Detention 
Home,  78;  population,  68;  presi- 
dent county  board,  70,  71-72;  re- 
corder, 75 ;  sheriff,  72,  73,  74 ; 
State  Aid  roads  in,  204;  State's 
attorney,  75-76;  State  courts  in, 
76-79;  superintendent  of  schools, 
75,  166,  168-169;  surveyor,  75; 
treasurer,  73,  74,  91,  92. 

Cook,  Daniel  P.,  68,  136. 

Corporations,  taxation  of,  88; 
public  utility,  205,  206. 

Cost  of  elections,   iii. 

County,  agent,  84,  181 ;  assessor, 
90,  91 ;  boards,  66,  203 ;  com- 
missioners, 66-67 ;  government, 
faults  of,  66-67. 

Counties,  area,  65 ;  population,  65 ; 
work  of,  65. 
Courts.    See  Judges. 

Currey,  J.  S.,  16,  17,  61,  63, 
quoted,  131-132. 

Cutting,  Charles  S.,  121. 


Dead  animals  removed,  32-33. 

Delinquent  taxes,  95,  96. 

Deneen,  Chas.  S.,  103,  152. 

Detective  bureau,  40. 

Detention  hospital,  Cook  Co.,  80, 
83-84. 

Diagrams,  Chicago's  Pocketbook, 
21;  Chicago  Public  Safety  de- 
partments, 34;  Courts  of  Illi- 
nois, 160;  Our  System  of  Law, 
159;  Township  with  Sections 
numbered,  62;  Subdivisions  of  a 
Section,  62. 

Director  public  safety,  8. 

Dog-pound  master,  39. 

Doolittle,  Hon.  J.  R.,  quoted,  132. 

Drake,  Dr.  C.  St.  Clair,  photo- 
plays by,  33 ;  quoted,  35-36 ; 
model,  "  Breathing  Dolls,"  35. 

Dram-shop  law,  212. 

Dr.  Killjoy  Was  Right,  33. 

Dunne,  Gov.,  quoted,  37,  156. 


INDEX 


233 


Education,  board  of,  42,  169-170. 
Election  districts,  99,  100 ;  in  Cook 

Co.,  138-139;  officers,  loi. 
Election  commissioners,  lOi. 
Elections   in   Cook  Co.,   105;   cost 

of.    III. 
Eminent    domain,    right    of,    170, 

207. 
Equalization,  board  of,  88. 
Equity,  161. 

Error  of  Omission,  32,  33. 
Evans,  Dr.,  quoted,  29. 
Evanston,  assessment,  98;  city  of, 

98,    177;   director   public   safety, 

8 ;  school  districts  in,  62 ;  town 

elections  in,  56. 
Executive,  state,  151-157;  named, 

151. 
Exempt  from  execution,  property, 
116;  from  taxation,  89. 

Fairlie,  J.  A.,  quoted,  56,  94. 
Federal  civil  service,  176-177. 
Fee  offices  Cook  Co.,  181. 
Finance  committee,  19. 
Fire-prevention  day,  37. 
Fire  marshal,  6,  12,  36. 
Fitch,  Geo.,  state  rep.,  146. 
Foreign-born  in  Chicago,  49. 
Forman,    American   Republic,   29, 

50,  54,  65,  74. 
Fort  Dearborn,  16,  130-131. 
Fresh-air  crusade,  35-36. 
Funds  to  parents,  78. 

Garbage,  Chicago,  26,  50;  See  Ap- 
pendix B. 

Garfield,  Pres.,  176. 

Garner,  J.  W.,  Government  in 
United  States,  3,  88,  138,  151; 
quoted,  109. 

General  Assembly,  138-150;  ap- 
portionment of  members,  138- 
139;  committees,  143-144;  com- 
parison, congress  and,  49-50; 
disqualification  of  members, 
140-141 ;  employees,  142-143 ; 
organization,  141-142;  qualifica- 
tion of  members,  140;  rules  of 
procedure,  144;  salary,  senators 
and    representatives,    141 ;    ses- 


sions, 143;  speaker,  141,  142, 
143,  152;  work  of,  144-145. 

Governor,  152-155 ;  appointing 
power,  152-153,  196;  pardoning 
power,  154;  veto  power,  147- 
148. 

Grand  jury,  116,  117,  122. 

Greene,  E.  B.,  3,  9,  65,  88,  151, 
165,  188  {Government  of  Illi- 
nois), quoted,   194. 

Guitteau,  W.  B.,  quoted,  159. 

Health  commissioner,  6,  12. 

Health  dcp't,  Chicago,  29-32;  or- 
ganization, 29-32. 

Henderson,  Dr.  C.  W.,  quoted, 
209. 

Higher  education  in  state,  167- 
168. 

Highway  commission,  58,  203. 

Hospitals,  bureau  of,  32. 

House  of  Correc  Ion,  Chicago,  23. 

How  a  bill  becomes  a  law,  145- 
148. 

Hyde,  H.  M.,  quoted,  39. 

Illinois,  state  of,  126;  admitted  to 
union,  131;  area,  126;  capitals, 
134;  charity  law,  188-189;  coal 
in,  128;  constitutions,  132-134; 
constitution  amendments,  198- 
200,  202,  203;  forests  in,  127; 
history,  129-137;  Indians,  128; 
latitude  of,  126;  map  of  con- 
gressional districts,  133;  mean- 
ing of,  128;  northern  boundary, 
131-132;  physical  features,  126; 
slavery,  135 ;  under  territorial 
government,  130;  surface  of, 
127;  waterways,  127. 

Illinois  and  Michigan  canal,  135. 

Illinois  moving    forward,   201-214. 

Illinois  park  commission,  210-21 1. 

Illustrative  material,  13,  14,  19,  23, 
88;  A  Taxpayer's  Calendar,  97, 
98. 

Indeterminate  sentence,  118. 

Infirmary,  83,  195.  See  Oak  For- 
est. 

Initiative,  108,  109. 

Inspection,  food,  29;  sanitary,  29. 


234 


INDEX 


Inspectors  of  moral  conditions,  40. 
Institution  Quarterly,  188. 

James  and  Sanford,  63,  113; 
quoted,  120-121. 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  61,  177. 

Joliet,  city  of,  56;  penitentiary  at, 
1 18-120;  township  of,  55. 

Judicial  trials,  113-118;  civil,  113- 
116;   criminal,    116-118. 

Judiciary,  state,  159-164. 

Judges,  appellate,  100,  163;  cir- 
cuit, 76,  77,  99,  163,  164;  county, 
80,  85,  loi ;  criminal  court,  77; 
juvenile  court,  77-78;  municipal 
court,  27,  28;  probate  court,  80- 
82 ;  superior,  76 ;  supreme,  162- 
163. 

Judges  of  election,  loi,  102. 

Judson,  Harry  Pratt,  Government 
of  Illinois,  63. 

June  Law,  97. 

Juries,  114,  115;  differences  grand 
and   pelit,    122. 

Jurisdiction  of  a  court,  161-162. 

Jurors,  women,  80. 

Jury  commissioners,  82. 

Justice  of  the  peace,  8,  59,  114, 
124. 

Juvenile  court,  report  for  1912, 
79-So. 

Juvenile  Detention  Home,  78,  84. 

Krutckoff,  Chas.,  head  clerk  with 
Cook  Co.  board  of  assessors,  88. 

Laboratory  service,  30. 

Lawyers,  162. 

Legislative  reference  bureau,  208- 

209. 
Legislative    Voters'    League,    146, 

148-149,  187. 
Legislature    of    Illinois,     138-150. 

See  General  Assembly. 
Lewis,  Hon.  J.  Hamilton,   141. 
Library,  Chicago  public,  45-46. 
Library  directors,  12,  22,  46. 
Licenses,  11,  24. 
Lieutenant-governor,      141,      151, 

156. 
Lincoln,  Abraham,  134. 


Lincoln  Memorial  highway,  204. 

Lincoln  Park,  46,  48. 

Lindsey,  Judge  Ben,  77. 

Little  ballot,  108. 

Lobbying,  147. 

Local  governments  in  Illinois,  65. 

Local  improvements,  board  of,  24, 

26. 
Local  Option  Law,  212. 
Log-rolling,  147. 
Long  Nine,  134, 
Lovejoy  press  riots,  135. 

McCormick,  A.  A.,  pres.  Cook  Co. 
board,  71,  72,  179. 

McCleary,  J.  T.,  113,  see  Appendix 
B. 

McCulloch,  Catharine  Waugh,  59; 
quoted,  201-203. 

McKinley,  Wm.,  speaker,  141. 

"  Madam,  Who  Keeps  Your 
House?"  4. 

Maps,  Cook  Co.,  showing  town- 
ships, 69;  Illinois,  showing  con- 
gressional districts,  133 ;  Park 
districts  of  Chicago,  47;  Sani- 
tary district,  51. 

Mayor,  powers  of,  6,  10.  See  Chi- 
cago. 

Mental  hygiene,  rules  of,  193. 

Merit  system,  175-187;  in  city, 
177-179;  in  Cook  Co.,  179-184; 
in  Illinois,   184-187. 

Minority    representation,    139-140. 

Mothers'  pension  fund,  209,  210. 

Moving-picture  bureau,  40;  thea- 
ters and  films,  33,  40. 

Municipal  Coliseum  Law,  207-208; 
courts,  27,  28,  161 ;  ownership 
public  utilities,  206-207;  recrea- 
tion, 46-49;  Tuberculosis  Sani- 
tarium, 22,  34. 

Newell,  M.  H.,  article  by,  54. 
Nicholes,    Anna    E.,    71,    83,    179, 

184. 
Non-township  counties,  60,  66,  91, 

100,   195. 

Oak  Forest,  infirmary  at,  83. 


INDEX 


235 


Ordinance    of    1787,    130;    quoted, 

165. 
Outlook,  The   New  York,   article, 

41. 
Overseers  of  poor,  195. 
Owens,  County  Judge  John  E.,  80. 

Parents'  pension  fund,  78,  79,  209- 

210. 
Park  districts,  creation  of,  48. 
Penal  institutions,  1 18-120. 
Pendleton  Act,  176. 
Pertinent  questions,    14-iS,  63-64, 

81-82,  124-125,  150,  158,  173-174, 

187. 
Petit  jury,  122. 
Photo-plays,    33. 
Pinckney,  Judge  Merritt  W.,  78. 
Policeman,  see  Chicago;  compari- 
son   with    constable,    60;    police 

magistrate,  13. 
Police  pension  fund,  40. 
Police  women,  40. 
Polls,  see  elections  and  ballot. 
Poll-tax,  58,  204. 
Poor  relief,  194-195. 
Pope,  Judge  Nathaniel,  131-132. 
Poster,  4;  Clean  Chicago,  31;  Al- 
cohol, 213, 
Presidential   preference  vote,   108. 
Primary  elections,   103-104,  183. 
Primary  Law,  103,  183. 
Prison   industries,  board  of,    118- 

119. 
Probate  court,  80. 
Probating  a  will,  80-82. 
Probation  officers,   77;   adult,  84- 

85. 
Problems  under  township  survey, 

62. 
Property    exempt    from    taxation, 

89. 
Psychopathic  Institute,  192,  193, 
Public  baths,  32. 
Public   education,   165-173. 
Public  policy  Law,  109. 
Public  safety,  41-42;  bureau,  42; 

commission,     42 ;     departments, 

28-34;  director,  8. 
Public    utilities    commission,    119, 

205-206. 


Public  utility  certificates,  207. 
Pullman  strikes,  136-137. 

Qualifications  legal  voter,  100,  200. 
Queen  Victoria,  45. 

Referendum,  108. 

Registration,     101-102;     by     mail, 

102. 
Requisition  papers,  155. 
Restrictions  on  taxing  power,  96, 

97. 
Review,  board  of,  92-93. 
Ridgeville  township,  56,  59,  70,  91, 

98. 
River  Fore3t,  7,  8. 
Roosevelt,    Theodore,    quoted,   67, 

176. 
Rural    directors    country    schools, 

75. 


Sanitary  district,  50-53;  elec- 
tricity generated  by,  52 ;  govern- 
ment of,  52 ;  no  civil  service,  52- 
53;  salary  trustees,  53. 

Saturday  Evening  Post,  quoted  in 
Foreword   for   Teacher. 

School  administration,  local,  16^ 
170;  directors,  171;  funds,  per- 
manent, 166-167;  township  fund, 
166;  houses  as  polling  places, 
106;  law,  compulsory,  172; 
lands,  43;  statistics,  43;  taxes. 
165,  166;  system  of  Illinois, 
summary  by  outline,  173;  town- 
ship trustees,   170-171. 

School,  John  Worthy,  27. 

Schools,  high,  171-172;  normal, 
168;  township  high,  172;  Little 
Mothers',  29;  as  social  centers, 
44. 

Secretary  of'  State,  156. 

Sections,  twp.,  61,  62. 

Senators,  State,  see  General  As- 
sembly; United  States,  election 
of,  56,  108,  141. 

Senatorial  districts,  99,  138. 

Sherman,  Lawrence  Y.,  141. 

SheriflF,  72,  7s. 

Social  centers,  schools  as,  44. 


236 


INDEX 


Social  service  department  county 
court,  85. 

Soldiers'  Homes,  194. 

South  Park  board,  48,  49. 

Speaker  of  house,  see  General 
Assembly. 

Special  assessments,  11,  90,  95. 

Spoils  system,  176;  how  it  works, 
181-183. 

Springfield,  135,  161,  162. 

State  aid  good  roads  law,  203, 
205;  board  of  administration, 
189,  190,  191,  192,  196;  charities 
commission,  189-190,  191 ;  char- 
ity service,  188-197;  greatest 
need  of,  195-196;  care  of  in- 
sane, 192;  colony  for  epileptics, 
191,  193-194;  courts  in^  Cook 
Co.,  76-80;  charitable  institu- 
tions, location,  196-197 ;  Eye  and 
Ear  Infirmary,  185 ;  factory  in- 
spector, 211;  highway  depart- 
ment, 203 ;  hospitals  for  insane, 
184-185 ;  institutions  for  chil- 
dren, 193;  militia,  154-155; 
school  of  St.  Charles,  27,  194, 
197;  supreme  court,  162-163; 
superintendent  public  instruc- 
tion, 168;  Training  School  for 
Girls,  194,  197;  University,  167- 
168. 

Starved  Rock,  129. 

Streets,  city,  3,  4. 

Supervisor,  town,  57,  58,  66,  195, 
204. 

Surgical  Institute  for  crippled 
children,   190,   193,   197. 

Surplus  revenue  fund,  167;  State, 
166-167. 

Taxation,  88-98. 

Tax  warrant,  91,  92. 

Teachers'   pension    fund,    172-173. 

Town  of  Chicago,  17. 

Town,  assessors,  58,  91,  92,  93; 
clerk,  58;  executive  officers,  57, 
58;  how  formed,  55;  judicial  of- 
ficers, 59;  legislature,  56,  57; 
meaning  of  terms,  54-55 ;  -meet- 
ing, 56,  57- 

Towns,  54-60. 


Township,  survey  systems,  61-63; 

high  schools,  172, 
Townships  in  Cook  County,  70. 
Traffic  squad,  39. 
Treasurer,  city,  11;  county,  ys,  74, 

91,  92;  State,  156, 
Treaty  of  Greenville,  16. 
Trials,     civil,     113-116;     criminal, 

116-118. 
Tribune,  The  Chicago,  16,  39,  146; 

quoted,  199,  200. 
Tuberculosis,  hospitals  for,  84. 
Tuthill,  Judge  Richard  A.,  77. 

Unearned    increment   land   values, 

43- 
United    States    courts    in    Illinois, 
161. 

Vagrancy,  39. 

Ventilation,  division  of,  30;  model 

to  teach,  35. 
Veto    power,    governor,    147-148; 

mayor,    10,    20-22;    pres.    Cook 

County  board,  72. 
Village  government,  8,  9;  meaning 

of,  55. 
Visitors,  board  of,  191. 
Vital  statistics,  bureau  of,  29-32. 
Vocational  supervision,  44,  45. 
Voting,  see  Elections  and  Ballot; 

machines,  109,  no. 

Wards,  5,  6;  of  Chicago,  18. 

Wells,   David  A.,  quoted,  113. 

West  Park  board,  48,  49. 

Whiting,  F.  V.,  article  by,  41. 

Whitman,  John  L.,  27. 

Woman's  Auxiliary  Mass.  Civil 
Service  Reform  Ass'n,  175. 

Woman's  City  Club  of  Chicago, 
21,  43,  see  Appendix  B. 

Woman's   Suffrage  Law,  201-203. 

Workmen's  Compensation  Act, 
209. 

Writs,  seven  important,  122-124; 
attachment,  124;  certiorari,  123; 
habeas  corpus,  122-123;  injunc- 
tion, 123;  mandamus,  123;  quo 
warranto,  123;  replevin,  124. 

Young,  Ella  Flagg,  quoted,  4^2. 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 

AN  INITIAL  FINE  OF  25  CENTS 

WILL  BE  ASSESSED  FOR  FAILURE  TO  RETURN 
THIS  BOOK  ON  THE  DATE  DUE.  THE  PENALTY 
WILL  INCREASE  TO  50  CENTS  ON  THE  FOURTH 
DAY  AND  TO  $t.OO  ON  THE  SEVENTH  DAY 
OVERDUE. 


jm 


^ 


'•^m 


^^cL_i6_ie« 


LD  21-10m-5,'43  (6061s) 


/T  ^ 


YB  08477 


37170C 


UNIVERSmr  OF  CAUFORNIA  UBRARY 


